Anchor of the Soul
by MessintheMirror
Summary: Maxine "Maxi" Taylor hasn't had the best year. After a devastating loss, she is trying to put herself back together. Little does she know, that she is about to find help in the least likely of places. Eventual Stiles/OC
1. Prologue

_**Maxis POV **_

It was just a normal night. Nothing different or special about it. Gabi was at a sleepover, Renny was working, and Dad was planning out some final details on the phone with a client. Mom and I were on the couch, watching a marathon of some cooking competition, one of her guilty pleasures. For some reason, even though she couldn't cook to save her life, she loved to watch these shows, searching for the recipes after wards. She'd print them out onto recipe cards and file them along with the rest of them. She never ended up cooking any of them, it was always my dad. He was the chef of the family, and man was he good at it. I'm pretty sure if he hadn't fallen in love with building things at a young age, he'd be a world famous chef today.

"So, do you want to talk about it?" she asked, taking me by surprise.

"Talk about what," I asked, trying to sound confused.

"The reason that you are at home, on a Friday night, when I know for a fact both your best friends are currently at the lacrosse game or on their way to the celebratory after party. Does it have to do with Matt?"

"Matt? We broke up a week ago, and only dated for like, four months. Of course not Mom. Maybe I just wanted to spend some alone time with my favorite mother!"

She gave me a look, the one that says she knew better.  
"Fine. I saw Matt with some chic today at lunch, they were all over each other. I'm not upset that we broke up, it was mutual. But couldn't he have at least acted a little bit upset. Like he'd miss me a little? Am I that replaceable?"

"Oh baby. You are not replaceable, but why should Matt be sad if you're not? Isn't that a little selfish," she asked, using her counselor voice on me.

"Ugh, Mom, can't you just be a normal mother for five minutes? Tell me I'm right, hate on him a little bit with me, and tell me it's his loss and he'll regret it for the rest of his life?"

"Oh Maxine, come on. That's not what you want me to say. You just don't like having your own thoughts proved right. I'll allow you to be saddened that the relationship ended, but I won't allow you to wallow in self pity. Why don't you find out where your friends are, and I'll take you over there. I'll even take you up to my room, do your hair and make up and let you borrow some of my jewelry, maybe even a dress!"

"I don't know. I'm really not in the mood. Can't I just stay here, watch a movie with you, and enjoy some snack food," I asked, sending her a small smile.

"Is that really how you want to spend your Friday night? At home with your mom?"

"You make it sound like that's a bad thing. I happen to have the coolest mom in town." I hope up, walking into the kitchen. "You pick the movie, I'll pop some popcorn. Extra butter?"

"Extra butter" she said, getting up and walking to the movie cabinet. I popped the popcorn, melting butter and pouring it over the top and sprinkling it with salt. I walked into the living room, to see the opening of "The Breakfast Club" cued up. A huge grin crossed my face, "Great choice."  
"Only choice," mom replied.

We both sat, curling up next to each other, sharing the bowl of pop corn.

Halfway through, my dad walked in, groaning when he saw the movie playing.  
"This again, you've got to get tired of it eventually," he said, leaning down to kiss us both on top of our heads.

"Oh Daddy, you know your a closet Molly Ringwald fan. I bet you had such a huge crush on her growing up."

Mom and dad laughed, looking at each other.  
"I was too busy chasing this one to be caught up in silly celebrity crushes."

I looked to my mom for confirmation, seeing a soft blush on her cheeks.  
"He tells the truth. He was constantly chasing me in high school. He tried all the movie moves. I finally gave in after he pulled a Say Anything on me and played music outside my window. Your grandfather woke up first, coming up to tell me to go put the pour guy out of his misery. I agreed to a date that night and the rest is history." She looked up at my dad, a look of complete adoration on her face. Looking to my father, I saw the same look reflected on his face.  
"I hope I'm lucky enough to find a guy that looks at me the way you look at mom Daddy."

"You will be baby, someday, far in the future. Far, far, far into the future. You're only 14, you have much better things to worry about."

Mom and I laughed, sharing an eye roll with each other.  
"Shew, were trying to watch this movie," mom said, slightly slapping my dads arm.  
"Alright, alright, I know when I'm not wanted. I'm going to head out to the shop, maybe stop in the office and go over some papers. Come get me when your done and want ice cream. Renny should be home in a few more hours. Maybe we can watch something together then."  
"OK dear, I'll come get you when this is over." He leaned in for a kiss, it quickly turning into more then a peck. They rest their foreheads together, both saying I love you at the same time. I smiled, not at all uncomfortable. I had been witness to many passionate kisses between my parents, and was just grateful they were one of the parents still together, yet alone in love.  
We turned back to the movie, engrossed once again. When it ended, I took the popcorn bowl to the kitchen, mom following behind me. I felt her fingers run through my hair as I was rinsing out the bowl.  
"I still can't believe you dyed your hair this color. No, I really can't believe that I love it so much! I shouldn't, should I? That's not a very motherly thing to say, is it?"  
I laughed, running my fingers through my hair.  
"It's been cherry cola red for like, almost a month now mom. You should be used to it. Though I must admit, I miss my regular hair color. I'm glad this is just that demi-permanant coloring. A few more washes and I'll be back to normal!"

"Hmm, I'll admit it, I'll miss it. Maybe I should dye my hair a different color," she said, holding her hair up to look at her ends.

"Your hair is gorgeous, and besides, I think dad would have a fit if you changed it. He loves your hair. So does Gabi, she's always talking about how she hopes when she gets older it looks just like yours."  
Mom smiled at the mention of two of her favorite people loving her hair.  
"You're right. I wouldn't change it. I'll just live vicariously through you. Ready for ice cream," she asked, walking to the fridge.

"Always!" I walked to the pantry, pulling out the non-refrigerated stuff.

"Who ate it all?"

I turned to look, seeing her holding up a mostly empty container of vanilla.  
"Check the other containers, Gabi and Renny couldn't have ate all of them."

I continued grabbing toppings, listening to my mom open and close containers in frustration.  
"They all barely have a scoop or less in them. Those two sneaky devils. Guess well have to run to the store before we can do ice cream. I'll run and tell your dad. You go put on some shoes. I'll meet you at the car." She went to the sink, rinsing out the containers and then putting them in the recycling. I watched her walk out the back door, following the walk way to the separate building that housed my dads shop and both their home offices.

I made my way up the stairs and into my room. I switched my light on, walking to my closet. I scanned my closet, looking for my favorite American Eagle hoodie. It was worn in all the right places, a little bit big, and the comfiest piece of clothing I had. My brother had given it to me a few years ago, when he had outgrown it. I threw it on the ottoman in the middle and searched for a pair of jeans. I took off the dress I had worn to school that day, a simple beige capped sleeve dress, and pulled on the dark blue skinny jeans. I grabbed a black tank with a necklace and feather design on it and threw that on as well. I pulled on a pair of short socks (an obsession of mine) with fast food drawings on them and slipped into a pair of Toms. I checked my hair in my vanity, fluffing it up a bit, and grabbed my purse. I pulled my phone off the charger, placing it in my batgirl case. I only used it when I was at home. Batman was my guilty pleasure. I threw my phone in my purse and made my way downstairs, walking out the side door to climb into my moms Mercedes SUV, waiting for her. I saw my Dad and her walk out of the shop, hand in hand, to the car. He opened her door for her and she got in. She placed her purse on the floor behind her and started the car. He gave her another kiss, told us he loved us, and we drove off.

I turned the stereo on, changing it from my moms usual talk radio, to something more recent. I found a Lady Gaga song, knowing it was something my mom knew, and turned it up. I started singing and dancing, trying to get my mom to join me. After a moment or two we were laughing and car dancing, just enjoying some quality mother/daughter time. We made it to the grocery store, noting that it closed in 15 minutes. That meant Renny would be off soon too. Wonder who would get home first.  
I followed my mom down the freezer aisle.  
"What flavors should we get? Renny should be home shortly, maybe before we even get there."

"Well, then we should get him and your dad some Rocky Road. What flavor would you like?"

"I think I'm just going to get something simple, then add the toppings. Maybe Neapolitan, that way Gabi can have the strawberry next time she sneaks it?"

I grabbed the Neapolitan and a thing of rocky road. I watched mom looking, trying to decide what she wanted. Finally, she grabbed some cookies and cream and we made our way to the front of the store. We paid and made our way out, me teasing my mom about the cashier flirting with her all the way.  
"Would you shut up! He is probably a student at Beacon! He most definitely was not flirting with me."

"Okay, whatever you say." We got in the car, another good song playing. This time mom turned it up, being a huge Kelly Clarkson fan, and sent me a smile as she started singing.

We were about half way through the song, both belting it out. Neither of us noticed the headlights of the truck that ran the red light, neither of us realized what was happening until it was all over.

"My life would suck without you," was the last thing I heard my mom say.

_**Dee's POV**_

When I came too, my vision was blurry. I didn't realize that it was from the blood running into my eyes or the concussion I'd received. I looked around, seeing Maxi in the seat beside me, unconscious.  
"Maxi, sweetie, can you hear me? Maxi?" No response.

I looked her over, realizing as I did this, that it was getting harder to breathe. Maxi had a cut on her forehead, her arm was at an odd angel, and had a piece of glass from the windshield protruding out of her upper thigh.

"Oh baby, come on. I need you to wake up for me. Come on," I said, gently nudging my daughters shoulder. Nothing.

"Help! Someone, please help!" I screamed, looking to see if I could find one of our cell phones.

I heard foot steps, the crunching of glass under those steps, and finally, "Miss? Are you OK? The cops are on their way."

I wept in relief, "Thank you, thank you."

My breathing was becoming more labored and my vision was coming and going. I could hear the sirens in the background, a pleasant sound to hear right now. They grew closer, finally growing loud. I could hear the doors opening, the rushing of steps, and the yelling of voices. Suddenly, a light was in my eyes.  
"This ones awake! Ma'am, can you hear me? Are you injured? What's your name?"

I could hear him, along with others on the other side of the car.  
"This ones unconscious, blood coming from her head. Arms at an odd angel, leg possibly injured as well. She's got glass in her upper thigh, no other signs of injury."

"Please, save my daughter. Get her out," I rasped.  
"Ma'am, what's your name?"

"Denise, Denise Taylor"

"Mrs. Taylor? The high school principal? What's your daughters name?"  
"Maxine, her name is Max," I gasped out, realizing it was nearly impossible to catch my breath.

I saw them start to remove her door, careful not to jar her. Once the door was removed, they cut the seat belt off of her, and carefully pulled her out, laying her on the gurney. I watched them wheel her off, her quickly leaving my site.

_**Mystery Party POV**_

Arriving at the scene, I was told to stay put. I looked around, trying to see what was going on. I couldn't see much around the ambulances and a firetruck. Ignoring the warning, I climbed out of the car, walking around to see what I could find out. I saw the car, a newer model Mercedes. I knew that car.  
That was Mrs. Taylor's car. I rushed forward, stopping when I came to a pair of medics pushing a teen girl on a gurney.  
"Maxi!?" I shouted. I rushed over to her, seeing she was in and out of consciousness. I squeezed her wrist, her eyes gently fluttering open. "Maxi?" She managed a small look my way before slipping back into unconsciousness. The medics gently pushed me out of the way, lifting her into the ambulance. Remembering why I had gotten out of the car, I rushed over to the scene. I stopped, gaping at what lay before me. The car was in shambles. It looked like whoever had been in there was lucky to be alive. Maxi was, so maybe Mrs. Taylor was too.  
"Dad, it's Mrs. Taylor, is she..."

My dad turned to look at me, the rant about staying in the car dying on his lips when he saw my face, realizing who was in the car. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me into his gently.

"It doesn't look good son. She's in and out of consciousness. When the crash happened, they think it broke one of her ribs, puncturing a lung. She's having a real hard time breathing. And when they tried lifting her the first time, they found something stabbing her lower back. They are removing that now. She's lost a lot of blood, they'll,"

"I'll donate!" I quickly shouted out, not even thinking about it, not caring if I was a match, "If there's something I can do, if I can help in any way, please let me." This time, rang unspoken between the two.

"That's very kind of you. We've got to get her to the hospital first."

Finally, they pulled her out. I could see her back as they lowered her to the gurney. Her entire shirt was red. She really had lost a lot of blood. They immediately placed a mask on her face and lifted the gurney. They were rolling her to the ambulance, passing by us. Without thinking, I reached out and grabbed her hand closest to me.

"Mrs. Taylor? Are you going to be OK?" I asked, just wanting her to assure me that she would be. She squeezed back, bringing her free hand up to the mask, never breaking our hold.

"My baby, is she OK? Please, Stiles, make sure she's OK," she says as she slips back into unconsciousness.

_**3rd Party POV **_

Little did they know, that those would be the last words she'd ever say.

The doctors start yelling about getting her to the hospital and how she'd need lots of blood. Stiles finds his dad, forcing him to flip the sirens and get to the hospital.

While Stiles gave blood, the Sheriff called Mr. Taylor. While waiting for Mr. Taylor, the Sheriff joins Stiles, waiting for him to be done.

They later find out, Maxi did take some of Stiles blood, but they never got the chance to with Mrs. Taylor. She was dead on arrival.

He sees Mr. Taylor and their son show up, Renny he thinks. He knows what comes next. He doesn't want to be there for this. He quietly slips out the door, no one but his dad ever knowing he was there.

**And I have returned! Man, it has been some years since I posted any sort of Fanfic. **

**This is going to be a slow burn, focusing more on Maxi and Stiles, then on the werewolf stuff for right now. She definitely won't know about their existence for quite some time, I can promise that. This will start in S1, and we're just going to play it by ear on how far we go! I hope you guys enjoy, leave me a review letting me know! **

**There is a link to my polyvore, where I will post face claims, chapter outfits, and even the layout of the house. Also, if you would like early looks, follow me on Tumblr for gif previews! Until next time lovelies! 3 **

**P.s. Faceclaims for this are as follows**

**Maxi Taylor – Nina Dobrev**

**Renny Taylor – Alexander Koch**

**Gabi Taylor – Bailee Madison**

**Denise "Dee" Taylor – Evangeline Lilly**

**Hank Taylor – Hugh Jackman **

**And that is the entire Taylor Family. :D **


	2. Touch

_**Give me touch**_

'_**Cause I've been missing it**_

_**I'm dreaming of **_

_**Strangers**_

_**Daughter - Touch**_

*_Music plays. Laughter. Singing. Bright lights. Sirens. Flashing lights. A face. Mom*_

"Mom", I scream. Jolting up, I see my door open, my brother stepping through panicked.

"Max? Are you ok?" He sits on the bed next to me, hand on my shoulder.

I take a deep breath, looking up to my brother. He looks better, like he's actually been sleeping. I haven't woke him up in the middle of the night in a while. I used to have them every night. I think he used to sleep outside my door, just in case.

"Yeah, just a dream. Sorry I woke you," I say, noting how sweaty I am. I look to my clock, only 3:00am, "I think I'm going to take a quick shower and then try to get some more sleep. Go back to bed, ok Renny?"

He watches me for a moment, as if he's assessing my wellbeing, my mental state even. "Are you sure you're alright? Do you want to talk about it?"

I give him a small smile, loving my big brother even more in that moment. Even though I knew he hated to talk about it, if I ever needed to, he would be right there.

"I'm ok Ren, promise. I'm ok," and with that last one, I'm not sure who it's meant for. Me or him.  
"Well, at least try to go back to sleep. You promised Gabi time tomorrow. Can't break that, she won't let you," he says with a quiet laugh.

"I promised her, I won't let her down. And I promise to go back to sleep."

He gives me a small nod of understanding, puling me in for a hug. He holds me for a moment, helping to calm us both down I think. He places a kiss on top of my head, then makes his way out my door, back across the hall to his room. I listen for his door to shut, throwing myself back on the bed.

The dream. It's the same one I've had for the last 11 months. It's never anything solid, just bits and flashes. I never remembered much the next day, usually just the flash of a face, but even that wasn't solid.

Shaking my head, I pushed myself up from the bed and made my way to my bathroom. Turning the water on, I stripped down, and stepped in. I stood under the hot water for a bit, finally turning it off and stepping out. Wrapping up in a towel, I walked to my closet, grabbing a fresh nightgown. I quickly braided my hair and climbed back in bed. It didn't take long before I was out again.

"Wake up! Wake up Max, you promised me!"

The last day of winter break. I had promised my sister I would take her shopping during it and had yet to do it. She jumped on my bed, bouncing me all over the place.  
"I'm up, I'm up! What time is it?"

"Almost noon. Ren told me to let you sleep until you woke up on your own, but he just left for work so he couldn't stop me anymore." I laughed, knowing that Ren must have been doing something to keep her occupied.  
"What did you two do this morning?"

"We made breakfast for Dad and you. Chocolate chip pancakes, bacon, and eggs. There's still some left, if you're hungry. Or we can eat at the mall. Is Danny still coming with us?"

"Last I checked, yes. Let me text him and make sure." I grabbed my cell off my nightstand and sent a quick text, asking if he still wanted to join us at the mall. Within moments he had responded, saying he couldn't wait to spend the day with his two favorite girls.

I told Gabi he would be joining us and told her I needed to get dressed. She ran off, saying she wanted to go make sure she looked ok. I'm pretty sure she has a crush on Danny. I laid there another moment, before forcing myself out of bed and into my closet. Since I was going shopping with Danny and not Lydia, I decided I could go a little bit more casual than usual.

I pulled on a pair of knee high argyle socks, a pair of dark skinny jeans, and a dark blue with polka dots button up. I grabbed a maroon sweater and put that on over the button-up, rolling my collar over the sweater, as well as the cuffs. I sat down, pulling on a pair of dark brown boots and heard my sister enter again. She was in green skinnys, a red Henley and a gray cardigan.  
I walked to my jewelry stand, grabbing a stack of silver bracelets and handing them to her. "Here, wear these," I handed them to her, looking through my necklaces, finally finding what I was looking for. I grabbed the elephant necklace out, walking to my sister. I had her hold her hair up, clasping the necklace. "Do you want me to do something with your hair?"

"Can you do that one braid? The one I can never do?" I laughed, ushering her into my bathroom.  
"The fishtail?" She shook her head excitedly. I sprayed her hair with some product and ran my brush through it. I had it braided and perfectly mussed within 5 minutes. She smiled at herself, admiring the braid from all sides.

I took some more product, mussing my hair and leaving it down. I then put on my makeup, going light today with just a swipe of eye liner and some gloss. I playfully put some blush on Gabi and we made our way out of the room.  
It was nearing 1:00 and I knew Danny would be here soon.

I walked into the kitchen, grabbing my mug and getting some coffee. I leaned against the counter, drinking it while watching Gabi write Dad a note.  
"Where is Dad?" I asked.

"He said he had some stuff to do at the office, but that he was cooking tonight. Renny and he asked us to pick up plain white undershirts and then some more Henleys for Renny. Any color he said, nothing over the top."

I shook my head, grabbing my purse and making sure my wallet had everything in it. I finished my coffee, taking my mug and rinsing it out before putting it in the dishwasher. As I was closing it, I heard a knock at the door. Turning around, I saw Gabi get a huge smile on her face and rush to the door. I shook my head, but refused to burst her bubble. If the nicest guy I knew was her first crush, I wasn't going to stop her. She would grow out of it eventually. I followed her to the living room, watching as she threw the door open and Danny swooped her up for a hug. His family and him had spent the break in Hawaii, and just got back last night. It had been a long break without him, and I was grateful he was back.

I stood off to the side, enjoying their back and forth. They talked about what Gabi did over her break, from a book report to practicing her soccer. Finally, it was like I existed again.  
"There she is! How's my girl?" he asked, walking over and pulling me in for a hug, swinging me around.

I laughed, swatting his back till he put me down. I hugged him properly and stepped back.  
"I missed you so much! I am so glad that you are back. I want to hear all about your vacation, and I can't wait to see what you brought me." I grabbed my leather jacket and followed the two of them out the door, locking it behind me.

As I was still 15 for a few more months, (the youngest out of our group of friends) Danny drove. We climbed in his car, talking the entire way to the mall. Once we arrived, we made a game plan. After holiday sales are the best! We started with the jewelry stores and stuff like that. We wouldn't get as much there and could carry the lighter stuff longer. Then we moved on to shoes, though Danny was the only one to get anything there. Then we moved on to Macys. I immediately grabbed a couple packages of undershirts for the boys, then followed Danny to look at henley's. Along with the henley's I got my Dad a couple of new flannels and Renny a few sweaters, one even being a cardigan. He'd thank me later.

We then went to shop for Gabi. Between Danny and me, she had several things to try on. We shoved her in a room and told her what we wanted with what and that we wanted to see her in everything.

We were sitting there, discussing the return to school when I heard my name being yelled. Turning, I saw my other best friend, Lydia Martin, walking towards us. Jackson Whittemore, her boyfriend, following. "Maxi, why didn't you tell me you were coming shopping today? We could have all come together. Why are you just sitting here? Where are your clothes, why aren't one of you in a dressing room?" She rattled off quickly, making my head feel like it was spinning for a second.  
"Hey Lydia, actually Gabi is in a room. She's trying on some stuff." Danny told her.  
"Gabi? Oh my goodness, let me see what they have you trying on!"

Gabi came out in the first outfit, and everyone oohed and awed over her. Danny moved over to talk to Jackson and Lydia sat beside me, waiting for Gabi to return with the next outfit.  
"You didn't even bother with a hello. I thought we'd agreed on being pleasant." Lydia whispered to me.

"Did you say the same thing to him, because I haven't heard a greeting from him yet either? I really don't get why it's so important for you that we get along. It's never happened, not since elementary school. I've hit him for Christ sake! Why would we suddenly be friends?" I asked, not seeing why this was so important.

"Maxine, you are my best friend. Jackson, is my boyfriend. If you two don't like each other, that means I have to split my time between the two of you, instead of spending my time with both of you. It's really quite an inconvenience. And as far as you hitting him, that is old news. I'm sure he's gotten over that."

"Gotten over that?! Jackson really doesn't seem like the kind of guy to get over a girl hitting them. I promised I would be civil, when you were around. That is all I can promise."

Lydia huffs, not happy about not really getting her way. But she had to know I was right. With an ego like his, there was no way that he had gotten over me hitting him. Besides, it's not like he went out of his way to be nice to me, even around Lydia. Yeah, he could probably be worse, I had actually seen him be worse to several people, but I would still be civil for Lydia. In this moment, being civil meant being quiet.

But it seemed that speaking his name had woken the beast and I was now on his radar.  
"So Taylor, how did you spend the break? Any hot dates?" he asked, a slight laugh under his breath. I saw Danny elbow him and Lydia send him a look.  
"Nope, no hot dates Jackson. With good ole Danny out of town and Lydia in and out as well, I spent most of my break with the siblings, watching an endless stream of Netflix. What did you do? Drown kittens and feed innocent girls poisoned apples," I asked, a sickeningly sweet smile plastered on my face. It was my turn to be elbowed in the ribs, a "stop" being hissed at me.

We both stared at each other for a moment, before Jackson broke the gaze. "Lydia, are you ready to go? I'm bored. Danny, get ahold of me when you are no longer tied down," and with that he walked off, not even waiting to see if Lydia was behind him.

"Seriously, you two are like children!" She hugged me, telling me to call her so we could make sure we didn't match tomorrow and ran after him, yelling a bye to Danny and Gabi.

Danny sat down beside me, a smile on his lips. He threw his arm around me, leaning his head against mine.  
"Will you two ever get along?"

"No."

"Well, that's something you both have in common. You're the most stubborn people I've ever met." We sat, watching the last few outfits Gabi was trying on. We decided on what to get, then headed to look for a few things for me, then shopping for Danny.

We each had our hands full as we made our way to the food court.

"Do we even bother with dinner, or just have a light snack. Danny, you're more than welcome to join us for dinner, pops is cooking something," I informed him. I saw the excitement grace his face, my father's food being one of his biggest weaknesses.  
"Man, I would love to, but lacrosse starts tomorrow. I cannot be all loaded down with pops home cooking. Maybe later in the season."  
We each ordered some froyo and grabbed a seat. We asked Danny about Hawaii and let him go on, asking questions during breaths. Finally, it was nearing 5:00. Danny needed to get home and get unpacked and I needed to make sure dad didn't need any help. Renny would be at work till at least 6:00, so it would be on me.

We made our way to the car, throwing our bags in the trunk. When we pulled into the driveway, dad was just getting out of his truck. He smiled, waving at Danny through the windshield. He made his way to the trunk, helping us grab some bags. He leaned down, asking Danny if he would be joining us for dinner.  
"Not tonight pops. Lacrosse starts tomorrow, as I'm sure you know. Can't be bogged down from a heavy meal. Soon though, count on it."

We all said bye to Danny, him offering to pick me up in the morning. I told him I would be riding with Renny, but he could offer the next day. We made our way inside, dropping our bags at the foot of the stairs. Gabi went straight to the couch, throwing herself down. I followed Dad into the kitchen, asking what we were having.

"Eggplant Parmesan. You can do the salad. Cut up the veggies. You know Renny is going to skimp on the eggplant and go for the salad."

I got in the fridge, grabbing out vegetables and bringing them to the island. I started chopping carrots, onions, and tomatoes. I threw it all in with the lettuce, hearing the front door open.  
"I'm home! Going to shower then I'll be down to help with dinner."

"No need to help. Gabi is setting the table, Maxi made the salad, dinner is in the oven. Should be done by the time you are."

I heard him thunder up the stairs and his door shut.  
I made my way to the living room, sitting down with Gabi.

"What are you watching," I asked, seeing something bloody on the TV.

"The Walking Dead."  
I grabbed the remote from her, turning to something more appropriate for a 12 year old. I settled on an episode of SpongeBob, placing the remote on the table.  
"Why did you change it? I was watching that."

"Gabi, you don't need to be watching stuff like that. It's just going to give you nightmares"  
"It isn't going to give me nightmares. I watch scary stuff all the time. Last weekend, at that sleepover I went to, we watched some of that show, True Blood. I didn't have nightmares, I was fine." She moved to grab the remote, and I reached for it. "Would you just stop? I'm not a baby."

We wrestled over the remote, my dad coming in to see what all the noise was about.  
"What's going on in here?"

"Gabi is watching stuff that she really shouldn't be. I turned it and she then proceeded to tell me that she's been watching things way too old for her."

"I'm not a child Max! Stop treating me like one."

"You are a child Gabrielle! You're 12! You shouldn't be watching stuff with blood and guts and sex!"  
"Just stop it! You're not my mom! Stop trying to act like her instead of my sister," she yelled, throwing the remote and running up to her room.

"Gabi! Gabrielle?" My dad paused, turning to look at me, "Maxine?" I just stood there, not sure what to do. Had I been acting like that? I looked to my dad, seeing his invitation to his arms. I ran into them, crying. I had never meant to hurt my sister. I just wanted to look out for her but maybe by doing that I hadn't been giving her what she really needed. A big sister.

I stayed in my dad's arms until the timer for dinner went off. He placed a kiss on top of my head, hands on my upper arm as he moved back a bit.  
"Are you going to be ok?"

"Yeah, I should probably go talk to her."

He shook his head yes and made his way into the kitchen. I could hear that the water was no longer running so Renny would be down soon. I made my way up the stairs, past Renny's and my rooms to Gabi's. I knocked, hearing a muffled go away.

I waited a moment, fighting with myself about whether I should just go in or give her time. I didn't want to let this go. I knocked again, got the same response, and walked in. She was in the corner, in her reading chair, a blanket over her head. I laughed a little, remembering how she used to do this when she was little. I wanted to point out that by doing this, she really wasn't proving any points, but I kept that to myself.  
I sat down on the ottoman in front of her, placing my hands on her knees. She didn't lash out at me, so I figured I could start talking.  
"I'm so sorry Gabrielle. I didn't realize what I was doing. I guess with loosing mom, I thought I needed to step up. I never thought that maybe you just needed me to be your big sister."

She lowered the blanket, letting her eyes show. They were red and puffy, and that broke my heart. I had never wanted her to be hurt. I thought I was doing what needed to be done, stepping in for mom. I never thought about doing that as a sister still. Looking back over the last year, I realized that I had been more of a mother then a sister. Constantly on her about her homework, her clothes, and what she was doing.

"I just want my sister back. We lost mom, and it sucked. But I don't need you to try and take her place. None of us do. We're all strong, especially together. We've proved that."

"When did you get so smart," I asked, moving to sit on the arm of the chair, pulling her towards me into a side hug.  
"I've always been smart. I'm nearly a genius. Mom and Dad had me tested." We laughed for a moment, finally hearing dad call us to dinner. We stood up, stopping to look at each other.  
"Are we going to be ok?"

"As long as you go back to being my sister, we'll be fine."

I shook my head in confirmation and followed her out of the room. When had my 12 year old sister, become my teacher? She was wise beyond her years, I sadly thought.

We reached the kitchen, Renny having set the table in our absence. Gabi thanked him, saying she would get his next turn. We all sat down, Dad saying grace before we dug in, talking about our day and the coming semester of school.

Renny had lacrosse, sure to be first line again. Gabi had soccer and science club. I had student counsel and tutoring. It would be another busy semester, but it was how we liked it. Once dinner was over, we kids cleaned up. Renny then made his way up to make sure he had all his lacrosse stuff ready, Gabi and Dad went into the living room to read together, and I made my way upstairs. After today, a run sounded like the best way to wind this night down. I changed into a pair of Nike compression shorts, a sports bra, a slouchy shoulder Pink sweatshirt, and my Asics trainers. I threw my hair up in a messy bun, pinning down any loose ends and finished it off with some headbands to hold my bangs back. I grabbed a makeup remover wipe and cleaned my face. I grabbed my iPod, strapping it onto my shorts and made my way out. I stopped by Renny's room, knocking.

"Come in."  
I walked in, finding him already in bed, lamp on his nightstand on while he read one of his school books.  
"Hey, going out for a run. Wanted to make sure you weren't interested in joining me before I left, but I see you are already in bed so I shall see you in the am."

"Night sis, don't let the bed bugs bite. And be careful out there." I blew him a kiss and shut his door. I headed downstairs, letting my dad know that I was leaving. I made my way out the door, starting at a steady pace, before speeding up. My running playlist was going, a few songs already having passed. I crossed a street, running on the sidewalk in a smaller residential area about a mile or so from my home. I was running, listening to the music, when suddenly a car backed out, nearly hitting me. I stopped just in time, shouting out.

The vehicle stopped, the driver hoping out and running around.  
"Oh shit. I didn't get you did I? My dad is going to kill me."

I looked up, trying to calm my heart. Upon looking up, I realized I knew this kid.  
"Stiles?"

"Maxi? Oh shit. Are you ok? I'm really sorry. I was in a hurry, my dad just left and I have to go get Scott like, right now. Are you ok?" he asked, coming over and looking me over, turning me around with no thought to what I had to say.  
"Stiles!"

"Yeah?"

"I'm fine. Calm down. I stopped before you could mow me down. Why are you in such a hurry anyway?"

"Umm… Do you want the truth?"  
"That would be why I asked. Seriously," I said, rolling my eyes at him.

"Ok, fine. I just happened to overhear a call my dad got," he started, before I interrupted.

"Eavesdropping? Very nice. Continue."

"Anyways. I overheard a call my dad just got. Some runners in the woods found a dead body."

I gasped, covering my mouth, "Oh my god!"

"Yeah, but that's not the best part. It's only half the body," he said, jumping excitedly like a little kid. I laughed, seeing the excitement written on his face.

"And you were going…"

"Oh right. I was going to get Scott, to take him to the woods, to see if we could find the other half of the body before the cops do," he said, smiling like it was the best idea ever.

"Are you crazy? Couldn't you like, get in a lot of trouble? That's like a crime scene or something!"

"Nah, we'll be fine, we do this kind of thing all the time."

"Ok, well, I guess be careful. I need to get home, since there appears to be a murderer on the loose," I started to put my headphones back in, when suddenly he grabbed my wrist.  
"Do you want a ride? I could drop you off before I go get Scott. He doesn't even know I'm coming, a few more minutes won't hurt," he said, smiling shyly while rubbing the back of his neck.

"Are you sure? Cause if so, that would be great. I'm a little freaked out to think I could have been the runner in the woods that found the body."

"Yeah totally." He made his way to the passenger door, opening it for me.

I hopped up, pulling the door shut behind me.

He got in and started the jeep. I grabbed the seat belt, trying to pull it over my chest. It wasn't budging.

"Um, Stiles, why won't this work?"

"Sorry it sticks sometimes. Let me."

He leaned across me, grabbing the buckle and yanking hard. I breathed in, smelling what seemed to be Axe and mint toothpaste. I liked it. It was a good mix. He got the buckle over my chest and clicked it in place.

I smiled, thanking him, and sat back for the ride.

"So, ready for school to start back up tomorrow," I asked.

"Is anyone really ready for school? Ever? I haven't been excited for a day of school since the days of finger paints and nap time." I laughed, agreeing with him as he continued. "You've got to like it somewhat, being involved in so much. Student council, tutoring, cross country, and all the various fund raisers you guys put on."

"I just like to stay busy, occupied." He shook his head, understanding.

It got quiet, but not uncomfortable. Before I knew it, we were at my house, my never having told him where to go. I looked over at him, sending him a questioning look.  
"You're Maxi Taylor. Your brother throws amazing parties. Everyone knows where you guys live." I shook my head, knowing this was the truth. I unbuckled my seat belt, turning to Stiles.  
"Thanks for being my knight in shiny blue armor and making sure I got home safe. My father will really appreciate it when he hears about the body later."

"Not a problem. What kind of guy would I have been, letting you jog off into the night knowing that there was a crazed killer out there?"

I smiled, thanking him again.  
"I'll see you in school tomorrow?"

"Yeah, um, I sit behind you in a couple of classes. Bound to run into each other there," he said, a little embarrassed, obviously thinking I didn't recognize him from our classes together.  
"Well, you also sit in front of me in English so, I guess you're right." I sent him a smile, climbing out of the jeep. I turned, shutting the door. "Night Stiles!"

I made my way up the porch, unlocking the door, and stepping inside.  
I waved at Stiles, and shut it. Leaning against it, I tried to calm my heart. Man, he is adorable!

**Alright, we have our first official chapter!  
What did you guys think? **

**Any criticism is appreciated, I want you to enjoy this as much as I enjoy writing it.**

**A very special thanks to MissECharlotte for all the help she has given me on this story. **

**She is seriously my rock, the thing that really makes this story get written. **

**Also thanks to BrittWitt16, xxbriannaxx, LionHeartMisfit, SpecialKtheDreamer, a weird production, helios selene, mortalLuxen, itsemilie, and lifeisarayofsunshine! You either reviewed, favorited, or followed and I really appreciate that. It's always nice to be supported.**

**As always outfits are on my polyvore and don't forget to follow me on tumblr for exclusive sneak peeks!  
3 LynZ**


	3. Kids

**Ok, we are going to try something different this chapter.  
I am going to write this in 3****rd**** POV and see if that doesn't make this  
a little bit better. I think I will be more comfortable and you will  
enjoy it more! If I'm wrong, let me know!  
To the chapter! **

_**Taking on the wind cause we never learn**_

_**Start a fire just to watch it burn**_

_**Over and over**_

The next morning, Maxi woke up to her alarm. She shut it off, laying back down. Back to school. Break was over and it was time to return. Not that this upset her. Stiles had been right, she did enjoy school. She enjoyed the activities she was involved in, she liked being around people, her friends. She liked helping people, which she got to do with tutoring. She was only helping one student right now, Isaac Lahey with English, but she always had the option to do more. The teacher in charge of tutoring was always telling her to take it easy. She argued that she could handle it, but she said as long as there were other people helping, she wasn't needed for more. She looked at her clock, 6:30am. Time to get up and start getting ready. She checked her phone, seeing a text from Danny and Lydia. Danny's just said see you at school, where as Lydia's gave a complete run down of her outfit, telling her to make sure they didn't match.

She climbed out of bed, going to her bathroom to shower. She got out, putting on her matching undergarments and a robe. She then blow dried her hair and placed curlers in. By this time, it was 7:15 and she could smell breakfast. She walked to her closet, grabbing the dress she planned to wear off the hanger. It was a soft pink, lace dress with long sleeves. She had got it while shopping yesterday, Danny insisting that she get it and wear today. After the dress was on and situated, she grabbed a pair of soft boot socks and pulled those on her feet. They were just a little longer than the boots she would be wearing, an off white color. Once they were on, she pulled her boots on. Coming in about mid-shin, they were a brown leather and gave her an extra bit of height. Coming in just under Lydia at 5'1", she needed all the help she could get. Once that was done, she made her way back to the bathroom. She pulled her long chocolate brown tresses out of the rollers, watching her hair fall in waves over her shoulder. She quickly did her makeup, going for a soft, but noticeable look. Smoky eyes, pink lips, and rosy cheeks. She pulled some bracelets out of her jewelry box, stacking them on her wrist before placing a watch on the opposite wrist. She put in some earrings and chose a necklace, then looked herself over. She liked the look, Danny being right about the dress. Not too short, but definitely not to long either. Her dad would let her out of the house in it, of this she was sure. She then proceeded to grab her book bag, double checking again that she had everything for school. She then checked her purse, making sure she would have cash for lunch and placed her phone inside, already on vibrate. She then grabbed everything, and made her way downstairs, beating Renny but not Gabi.

She could hear Gabi and her Dad talking as she placed her bags by the door. When she walked in, they were laughing as he threw a blueberry in the air, catching it in his mouth. She clapped, making her way to the cabinets. She grabbed a mug, pouring coffee in. Without adding anything to it, she took a sip, letting the hot liquid run down her throat.

"Good morning Max. You look very pretty this morning," her dad said, laying a kiss on her forehead.

"Thanks Daddy. Danny picked out the dress yesterday. Gabi, I love your new shirt. Very cute," she said, grabbing a plate and putting a piece of French toast on it.

"Thanks. I like the dress, it really does look good on you."

They ate in silence for a bit, listening to Renny rushing around upstairs. At 10 til 8, he came storming down the stairs.

"I hope you're almost done. I need to get in sometime at the library before school. I need to leave in 5."

"Well, pour my coffee into a thermos and I'll finish eating."

He did as she asked, placing her black thermos in front of her and going to grab his keys. She finished eating, placing her plate in the sink after rinsing it off. She gave her dad a kiss on the cheek, hugged Gabi, and grabbed her stuff.

"Let's go Jeeves."

"I cannot wait till you start driving! How much longer now?"

They yelled bye to Gabi and their dad and walked out to the garage. They got to Renny's truck, Maxi waiting for him to unlock it. She opened the door, placing her bags in the back with his lacrosse gear and climbed up.

"What is so important that you need to be at the library before school, on the first day back," she asked, looking out the window.

"Just some research for a senior project I'm working on. No big deal."

The rest of the ride was quiet, both thinking about the new semester and what lay ahead for them.

As they reached the school, Renny parked closer to the back, not wanting to take the chance of his truck getting hit. Maxi rolled her eyes, but knew saying anything was pointless.

"You'll be at lacrosse practice right? Then I'll drive us home." He said, looking to her for confirmation.

"Yes, of course. Lydia and I will be there, cheering all you boys on. Except for Jackson, she can do that on her own."

Renny laughed, knowing how she felt about the boy.

"Ok, well I'll see you after school. Have a great day." He said, a big sarcastic smile on his face. She grabbed her bags, hopping down from the truck.

"You too dork." She watched him walk off, putting her book bag on her back and her purse over her elbow. She started to make her way up to the school, managing to avoid being hit by a silver Porsche. Jackson, she thought angrily.

She continued her way to the front, reaching it just in time to see Jackson swing into a parking spot and throw his door open. Said door then hitting Scott McCall, Stiles' friend.

"Dude, watch the paint job." Jackson said.

Scott looked at him, a look between confusion and terror on his face. Jackson was not someone Scott wanted to mess with. Someone yelled for Jackson, but before he could walk off, Maxi hollered at him.

"What the hell Jackson? You not only nearly ran me down, you then hit this poor kid with your door and then proceed to blame him? That's a new low, even for you," Maxi said, stepping past Scott to look up at Jackson.

"Awe, is this your new hobby? Protecting strays," he said, shooting a smirk at Scott over my shoulder.

"I'm sure Scott can take care of himself. I'm more upset about you ripping through the parking lot, not worrying about the people walking through it! Pedestrians do have the right away, Whitteless! It would help if you remembered that, and don't park so close to the bike rack next time."

Before he could say anything, she turned to Scott.

"Are you ok?"

He looked at Maxi, mouth slightly open, lost for words.

"Scott," she snapped her fingers, "Are you ok? He didn't actually hurt you did he."

"No," he nearly shouted at her, "No, I'm fine. No harm done."

"See he is fine. You are fine. Everyone is fine. Are you done with your tantrum? I have better things to do," and with that, he walked off to join his friends.

Maxi gave Scott a small smile, placing her hand on his shoulder before walking off.  
"Don't let him get to you. He's all bite," and walked off to meet Lydia.

Finding Lydia at her car, she stood there waiting for her to get out. She was of course impeccably dressed and knew it. She smiled at Maxi, grabbing her bag out of the backseat.

"I can't believe your still carrying a book bag, even if it is a Michael Kors. It should be illegal to look as cute as you do and carry a book bag."

"Good morning to you too Lydia. Ready for school?"

"I suppose. Still sucks that we don't have more classes together."

"Yeah, it does. Hopefully it will be different next year."

We continued to talk, making our way to the front of the school. As we were walking, Maxi could see Stiles and Scott up ahead. Stiles seemed to be pretty excited, jumping around with a huge smile on his face. As she got closer, she could start to make out what he was saying.

"Oh god, that is freaking awesome. I mean, this is seriously going to be the best thing that's happened since…" he cut off, making eye contact with Maxi and then glancing to Lydia. His eyes slowly traveled over both of them, head to toe. "Since girls started wearing those short skirts. Hey Maxi, Hey Lydia, you look…"

They kept walking, but before they went in the door, Maxi looked back over her shoulder. Stiles and Scott were still watching them. She gave them a small smile, then waved, before walking in the school.

Lydia and Maxi went to their lockers, dropping off their coats and purses. They hung around Maxi's for a bit, until the warning bell rang. They hugged and headed in opposite directions. Maxi towards English and Lydia towards history. When Maxi walked in, she made her way to her desk. This was the class she had mentioned to Stiles yesterday, the one where she sat behind him. It was the row closest to the windows, very last desk. Scott sat next to him, an empty desk behind him from a kid that had moved last semester. She made her way down the row, saying hi to friends as she got to her seat.

"Morning boys. Ready for the new semester?" she asked, passing Scott and Stiles.

She placed her books on her desk and sat down. Looking up, she saw Isaac walk in, and waved him over, "Isaac." He saw her, heard her but ignored her. He gave her a subtle shake of his head, and continued to his usual seat on the other side of the room. Stiles and Scott watched the exchange, giving each other questioning glances. Why was Maxi talking to Gravedigger Isaac, and why was he ignoring her. Stiles turned to look at Maxi, a questioning look on his face. She smiled, waving him back forward. She blew out a breath, aggravated with him always ignoring her. She opened her notebook, and grabbed out a purple pen. The teacher walked in and started writing on the board.

"As you all know, there indeed was a body found in the woods last night."

At this, she saw Scott look over to Stiles, and remembered what he had told her last night. Had they found the other half of the body? She saw Stiles laugh and grew even more curious. She ripped out a piece of her notebook paper and wrote on it.

_M - Did you find the body last night?_

She folded it up, "Psst, Stiles," she said, tapping him on the shoulder with the note. He jumped a little, looking over his shoulder at her.

"For me?"

She rolled her eyes, dropping the folded up paper over his shoulder onto his desk. She watched him try to stealthily open it, which wasn't stealthy at all, and waited while he read it. He looked back over at her, before writing on the paper. He folded it back up and dropped it back onto her desk. She leaned down, making sure the teacher couldn't see her.

_S - Scott did. I got caught._

She giggled, slapping a hand over her mouth quickly.

_M - Didn't I warn you about that? _

_S – Yeah yeah, first time for everything. _

She laughed, thinking he had probably been caught more than once.

_M – I suggest being more stealthy on your next adventure _

He turned and smiled back at her, but they both turned to the front when they heard the teacher mention that a suspect was in custody. Scott and Stiles shared another look, then looked back to the front.

Maxi grabbed the syllabus, looking it over. They were starting with Kafka's Metamorphosis, fun.

The class sat reading over the syllabus, waiting for the teacher to continue. She doodled in her notebook, looking over to Isaac. He was in the first row, back desk. He had his hoodie pulled up close to his ears, and his head down. She would need to catch him after class, confirm their tutoring schedule for the semester.

The door to the classroom opened, and in walked the Assistant Principal and a very pretty girl. She was introduced, Allison Argent. The teacher directed her to the chair behind Scott, beside Maxi. Maxi watched as Scott immediately turned, handing her a pen. Allison gave a confused look at the pen, then back at Scott. She then looked around the room, finally looking over at Maxi.

Maxi held her hand out, "Hi," she whispered, "I'm Maxine Taylor, everyone calls me Maxi though. Welcome to Beacon Hills."

Allison smiled, already liking the girl. "Thanks, I'm Allison, which you obviously already know."

Maxi waved her off, laughing. "No problem. Do you need any help getting around? I can show you to your locker after class if you don't mind waiting."

"That would be great, thanks."

Maxi pointed to her schedule, letting her know that she wanted to look at it. Allison handed it over, placing the syllabus in her bag.

"We've got most of our classes together. Next is math. And your locker is right by mine. I just need to talk to someone when class ends, then we can make our way there. It's on the way to math."

Allison smiled, "I have to speak with the teacher, so that's fine."

Class continued, the teacher drowning on and on. Finally, the bell rang. Maxi jumped up, pushing her way through the students.

"Isaac! Isaac wait!"

She was chasing the boy into the hallway. She knew he could hear her.

"Isaac, stop! Isaac, damn it. Isaac Lahey, stop right now!"

He stopped, realizing that a crowd was growing from her yelling. He slowly turned towards her, seeing she still had a ways to catch up to him, her voice sure did travel.

"What the hell Isaac? Did you not hear me?"

He stared at the ground, not looking up at her.

"Are we still on for tutoring this semester? Do you want to keep the same schedule, or do we need to move it around for lacrosse?"

"The schedule is fine. I'll make it work," he said, turning to go.

"Wait," she said, grabbing his sleeve and stopping him from walking away, "How was your break? I tried calling you a couple of times, sent a few text. Thought we could hang out. Did you not get them?"

"I got them, I just didn't feel like answering," he said, still not making eye contact.

She was starting to get mad, and she showed it. She stomped her foot, letting out an aggravated groan. People were starting to stare, but she was used to all eyes on her.

"Isaac, would you please look at me?"

He looked up, annoyance clear on his face, "That better princess?" he snapped.

"Yes, thank you. Now, are you sure that the old schedule still works for you?"

"Just keep things the way they were. Can I go now," he asks, looking off down the hall, like he actually had somewhere important to be.

"Is it that hard to be seen with me," she asks, the pain evident in her tone.

She looks at him, then around the hallway. She can see Stiles and Scott, Allison, even Jackson watching them.

"You know that it's not me I'm worried about," and with that, he storms off down the hall. She looks down to her feet, taking a deep breath, then looks up.

"Nothing to see her, move along," she says, throwing glares at stragglers. She turns to Allison, "I think we'll have to do the locker after math, or we'll be late."

A couple of classes later, Maxi had shown Allison her locker and gotten her acclimated to the school. They had spent lunch break finding the rest of Allison's classes and getting her books for her. The final bell had just rang and they were at their lockers, putting away what they didn't need and making sure they had what they did. Maxi had just closed her locker, winding her scarf around her neck, when she noticed Allison, leaned against the locker, looking down the hall. She turned, seeing Scott starring right back. Before Maxi could make comment, Lydia came up, going straight for Allison.

"That jacket is absolutely killer. Where'd you get it?"

"My mom was a buyer for a boutique back in San Francisco."

"And you are my new best friend."

"Hey! Standing right here," Maxi protested, a fake pout on her face. Lydia and Allison both laughed, looking at her.

"Well, you've got Danny, it's only fair."

Speaking of her best friend, she'd barely had five minutes with him today. She would see him at practice though.

Before anyone could say anything else, Jackson came up, grabbing Lydia around the waist and kissing her. Lydia pulled away, introducing Jackson and Allison. It was quickly decided that Allison would be joining them for lacrosse practice. They made their way to Lydia's locker, saying bye to Jackson. She grabbed her coat and they headed for the field.

They reached the bleachers, climbing up to what Lydia said was the prime seating. Maxi noticed Allison slow down, and looked up. She was staring at the field, and apparently she was staring at Scott, if he staring back was any indication. They exchanged smiles, as Maxi watched on. Maxi watched as Stiles took a seat on the bench and Scott got cornered by Coach. Nothing good ever came of that. She could see Danny and Renny on the field, waving when they looked her way.

"Who is that," Allison asked, looking at Scott in the goal.

"Him? I'm not sure who he is. Why," was Lydia's response?

Maxi rolled her eyes, knowing that Lydia had been friends with Scott in elementary school just like the rest of them.

"He's in my English class," she said, trying to play it off.

"That's Scott. He's a nice guy."

Practice started, and things weren't looking too good for Scott. He took the first shot to the face, falling down. After that though, he started catching them. Stiles seemed just as surprised as everyone else. As he kept catching them, Stiles started getting more excited, as did the crowd. Then Jackson stepped up, of course needing to show off. He was going to embarrass the poor guy.

Maxi jumped up, screaming, when Scott caught it. She clapped and yelled, "Way to go Scott!" Lydia jumped up too, Jackson throwing her a dirty glare.

They watched the rest of practice, Allison and Maxi deciding that Maxi would ride home with her and help her start unpacking. Lydia declined, saying she would come over once the work was done. Practice ended and the boys went to the locker room. She told Allison she would meet her in the parking lot, needing to let her brother know not to wait for her.

She made her way to the locker room, leaning up against the wall opposite the door. A couple of guys came out, seniors and juniors, friends of Renny's. They said hi, but kept walking. She was looking down at her phone when the door opened again. She looked up, and instead of seeing Renny, it was Stiles.

"Hey. You're not, waiting for me, are you?"

She smiled, "No, sorry, not this time. I just need to speak to my brother real quick."

"Oh," he said, disappointment crossing his face. "He should be out in a minute. He seemed like he was about done."

He started to walk off, but Maxi called out his name.

"Why didn't you practice with the team? You are on it, aren't you?"

He scuffed his shoes, looking down at them. Of course she noticed he never left the bench.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on the team. Today was just a warm up, I'm sure I'll get to do more next time."

"I'm sure your time will come. You made the team, you've got to have some talent, right? Besides, if you don't get on the field, how am I supposed to cheer for you?"

He looked up, shocked. She wanted to cheer for him? She wanted to cheer for him!

"So, what are you off to do? No bodies to find today, I'm assuming."

"Actually, Scott and I are going back out to the woods. When he found the body last night, he dropped his inhaler. Says they're expensive so were going back to find it. Maybe I'll get to see the body."

"Returning to the scene of the crime, what exciting lives you lead."

"You could come, if you wanted," he said, before he even really thought about it.

"I'm not really dressed for it, am I," she said, gesturing to her dress, "My short skirt and all."

He looked at the dress, giving her the head to toe once over again. When he reached her face, she was watching him, and she winked at him. She really had heard him this morning, and she didn't seem mad. Thank god!

He laughed, fidgeting a little bit. "No, I suppose not. Maybe next time?"

"You planning another trip to the woods to look for a body Stilinski? If so, I might have to ponder your involvement in all of this."

Before he could say anything else, the locker room door opened, and out stepped Renny. "Max, what's up? I thought we were meeting at my truck."

"Yeah, about that. I'm actually going to head home with my new friend, Allison, she needs some help unpacking. Let Dad know I'll be home after dinner, yeah?"

"Sure, will do." Renny left, leaving Maxi and Stiles.

"I should probably go. Allison and her dad are waiting for me."

She turned to walk off, noticing that he was walking with her.

"My jeeps this way, I'm not following you or anything weird like that. I promise."

She stopped, waiting for him to catch up. She wove her arm through his, noting the height difference. She reached just above his shoulders. Man he was tall. He stiffened a little bit, but then relaxed.

"So, are you coming to the party on Friday? Everyone is going to be there."

"I um I wasn't invited."

"Well, consider this a formal invitation. I, Maxine Taylor, invite you…What's your real first name?"

He gulped, "We don't speak of such things. Just Stiles…Please?"

"Ok then. I, Maxine Taylor, invite you, Stiles Stilinski to the party on Friday night. I will be very upset if you don't show. Promise you'll be there? You can bring Scott, or a date if you want."

"Will Isaac be there?"

She gave him a confused look, not sure why he would ask that. He did see the scene she had made early that morning, "No, it's not really his scene. Besides, he'll probably be working."

It didn't really give him any information into what was going on with the two, but he'd take what he could get. Maxi Taylor, the prettiest, most popular girl in school, had just formally invited him to the first party of the year. Things were definitely looking up. Maybe he was getting away from that scarlet nerd thing he had told Scott about.

"Ok, yeah, I'll be there. No date though, and I'll see what Scott says."

By this time, they reached the parking lot. There was a SUV parked by the curb, Allison standing beside it. She waved when she saw them, getting in the front seat.

'Well, there's my ride. Thanks for walking with me. I'll see you tomorrow Stiles."

She let go of his arm and made her way to the car, climbing in. Allison introduced her dad, and they made their way to the Argent house.

The drive to the Argent house was quick, and full of laughter. Mr. Argent was a nice guy, Allison obviously taking after him. When they got to the house, Allison and Maxi took the stairs to Allison's room. When they walked in, it was to paint samples, disarrayed furniture, and boxes. Allison laughed, waving Maxi into the room.

"Let's do the clothes. That way, if you decide to paint, that will be out of the way," Maxi said, taking charge of the situation.

They each grabbed a box marked clothes and carried them into the closet. They set them down, both opening their box and starting to hang items up. Once they got into a rhythm, it was easy to see what should go where. As they continued, they talked about places Allison had lived before, friends she had left behind. She explained that with the short times she had lived in most places, she had never really left anything substantial behind. Never really dated, and didn't plan to anytime soon.

"What about Scott? Sure seems to be something there between you two."

"He's like, ridiculously cute. It's hard for me to believe he's not taken," she said, hanging up a ridiculously cute cropped blazer.

"I don't really know him much anymore, we haven't really hung out in a few years, but he's always been a really nice guy. I don't know why no one's snatched him up."

"Life's mysteries," she said, as there was a knock at her door.

"Can I come in?" we heard her mom say.

The door opened, revealing Mrs. Argent. She was a tall, fierce looking woman, who looked like she didn't take bull from anyone. Maxi smiled at her, taking a seat on the bed.

"Mom, this is Maxi, Maxi, this is my mom."

"Nice to meet you Mrs. Argent," Maxi said, stepping up and holding her hand out.

"Oh my, someone's parents taught you right," Mrs. Argent said, taking Maxi's hand and shaking it, "And please, call me Victoria."

"Victoria, got it."

"Well, I don't want to interfere. I just brought up some snacks and drinks, thought you might be working up an appetite. Seems like the most important part of the bedroom is almost done."

"Yeah, just about done with my clothes. I think I'm going to keep this color, so later Dad can move the rest of the furniture and I'll get all the small stuff done."

"Well, I'll leave you guys too it. Allison, will you be driving Maxi home?"

"Yeah, if that's ok."

Mrs. Argent shook her head, sending a smile back at both girls before leaving the room.

"So, family night Friday?"

Allison blushes, looking down at the ground.

"Yeah, so it was a total lie. I just felt, kind of overwhelmed by Lydia and Jackson."

"I totally understand. Lydia can be a bit much sometimes, but 7/10 times, she means well. The fact that she approached you is kind of a big deal. She's very protective of her little circle, and doesn't usually invite people in. It's been the same group since like, 5th grade? Up till then, it was always play dates and group field trips with all of us. Something changed in 5th grade though. It was like, our parents gave us the right to pick our friends all the sudden or something. We split, went our own ways, and most of us never looked back. Especially Jackson and Lydia."

"Well, I'm glad that she approves of me at least," she said, a smile on her face.

"You'll get used to her. Once she accepts you, she's like a mama lion. She'll always have your back, and what's better than that in high school?"

Maxi smiled, fondly thinking of the fiercely loyal strawberry blonde, before grabbing a snack and nibbling on it.

After they ate, they finished hanging up the clothes while her dad came in and placed all the furniture where Allison wanted it. Once the furniture was placed, they started unloading the rest of the boxes, putting decorations where they thought they would look best. Once they broke down the last box and threw it into the hall, they flung themselves back onto the bed, tired from all their work.

"Thank you so much for all the help Maxi. This would have taken me days to finish by myself, and I never would have thought to do some of the decorating ideas you came up with. My room looks better than it ever has. I really appreciate it. It's nice, knowing I have a real friend. No one's ever offered to help with this stuff before."

Maxi turned her head, looking to Allison.

"I was really glad to help, and honestly, it's nice to have another girl friend. Someone who's not just trying to get a good seat at the popular table or get an in with the lacrosse team. Someone who just wants a friend," Maxi said, giving her a small smile. Allison returned the gesture, turning to look back at the ceiling.

"Do you need to get home soon?"

Looking at the clock, Maxi saw it was almost 8:00. She still had to do her physics homework, take a shower, and talk to Danny about their days.

"Yeah, I probably should. Are you sure you want to drive me home? I can have my dad or brother come get me, no problem."

"No, I'm happy too. It will give me a chance to learn the town, and I might as well get the drive to your house down right away."

They laughed, both getting up and putting their shoes back on. They walked down the stairs and into the living room, to find both adults sitting on the couch, watching TV.

"Mom, Dad, I'm taking Maxi home. I'll be back shortly."

"It was very nice to meet both of you. Have a good night."

Mr. Argent spoke up first, "It was nice meeting you as well, and we look forward to seeing you around."

With the goodbyes out of the way, they made their way outside, and into Allison's car.

They'd been driving for about five minutes, when Allison went to turn up the music on a song both girls were excited to sing along too. It was that split second look away, when Maxi saw it. A dog had ran into the road. She started to warn Allison, barely getting her name out, when they heard the thunk of something hitting the front of the car.

Allison quickly stopped the car, putting it into park, and jumping out. Maxi just sat there, heart racing. Suddenly, Allison was opening the back door, placing a small sized dog on the seat.

"Oh my god, I hit him. I hit him, Maxi!"

She shut the door, climbing back into the driving seat.

"Where do I take him? Do you know where the vet is?"

Maxi heard her, but didn't immediately respond. She was still trying to calm her heart down. She kept telling herself she was fine, that they had just hit a small dog.

"Maxi, Maxi, are you ok?" She felt a hand on her shoulder, and that snapped her out of it. She turned to Allison, giving her a small smile.

"Sorry, freaked out a little bit. Yeah, the vet is up ahead. If you keep going straight for two more blocks, then turn left, you'll see it. I'm not sure if they are still open or not though."

Allison threw the car into drive and floored it. She followed the directions Maxi gave her, pulling into the parking lot of the vet within 5 minutes. They both got out of the car, immediately getting soaked by the sudden rain storm. Maxi made her way over to the drive side, while Allison went to knock on the vet's door. It looked like they might already be closed. Maxi kneeled, petting the dog, listening to Allison pound on the door. Suddenly she stopped, and Maxi could hear talking. She looked over her shoulder, to see Allison and Scott making their way to the car. She moved out of the way, letting Scott gently grab the dog, taking him inside.

She followed behind, pulling Allison to a stop just outside of the exam room.

"I'm going to call my brother, have him come get me. He's just getting off work, so he'll be right by here. You go take care of the dog, ok?"

"Are you sure? I can still take you."

"No, really it's ok. Go help Scott fix up the pup, and I'll see you tomorrow."

Allison and her hugged, then Maxi watched Allison walk back into the exam room. Maxi pulled her phone out of her purse, holding down the 2 button, and putting the phone to her hear.

"Hello, Maxi?"

"Renny, hey, can you pick me up at the vets?"

"Right now? Why are you at the vet?"

"Yes, now, or as soon as you can. And I'll explain it when you get here. Honk the horn," and before she could finish her sentence, there was a horn honking.

"I just got off work, I was not even a block away when you called. Good timing, now hurry up so you can explain what is going on."

She hung up her phone, placing it back in her purse before making her way outside and running to the truck. Renny already had the door open for her, so she just had to climb up. He threw a lacrosse hoodie at her, and she wiped off her face.

"So, explain."

"Allison was bringing me home, when it started to rain. She looked away for one second, and next thing we knew, we were hitting a dog. I kind of freaked out, and didn't want to have to answer any questions."

"Aw, Maxi. That's understandable. At least you are getting into vehicles again. You have to look at all the progress you have made over the last year, not look at where you are lacking. You hit an animal and freaked a little bit, it's ok. I'm sure it wasn't even as bad as you think it was."

She thought about it, he was right. He always was. She had just spaced out a little bit, it's not like she had started screaming (which had happened for a while after the accident any time she got into a car). Allison probably hadn't even thought much about it.

"You're right, as always. Thanks Ren. How was work?"

They talked the rest of the way home, about their first day back and lacrosse practice. When they parked in the garage, Renny and Maxi both jumped out, making their way into the house. When they entered the backdoor, into the kitchen, their dad was sitting at the counter, reading the newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee.

"Hey Dad! What was for dinner," Renny asked, going directly to the fridge.

Before answering Renny, their dad noticed that Maxi was soaking wet.

"What in the world happened to you," he asked, putting the paper down and coming to Maxi.

"I'm fine, Dad, I'm fine. Allison accidently hit a dog on the way to bring me home. I got wet when we got to the vets office. But seriously, I'm fine. Is there any dinner?"

"Yes, there's a plate of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and grilled green beans in the oven for both of you. Go upstairs, shower, and change before you eat though."

He placed a kiss on her head, giving her a gently nudge towards the door. She smiled at him, took the hint, and made her way to her room. She threw her purse and book bag on the floor by her desk, stripped her coat off her soaking body.

She made her way to the closet, grabbing her robe out. She stripped off the skin soaked dress, snuggling deep into the dry robe. Once the robe was on, she sat down, unzipping her boots, and pulling them and the socks off. She then made her way back into the closet, removing all her jewelry from the day. Once the robe was the only thing remaining, she entered the bathroom. She turned the water as hot as it went, and stepped into the shower.

When she got out, she wrapped up in a towel, and walked back into the closet. She pulled an Alabama Crimson Tide shirt out, a matching pair of sleeper shorts, and a knee high pair of socks. She pulled them on, and made her way back downstairs. Her dad was the only one left in the kitchen, still reading the paper. She opened the oven, seeing Renny's plate was gone already. She pulled hers out, grabbed a fork, and took a seat across from her father. As she began to eat, he got up, making his way to the fridge. He pulled out a gallon of milk, grabbed a glass, and filled it. He then set it in front of Maxi, a pat on her head, before taking his seat across from her again. She continued to eat, asking him about his day, and how soccer practice was for Gabi. He folded the paper up, and while she was looking at the front page, he saw her gaze.

"Have you heard about this? I was a little unnerved when I learned this all happened around the time you were out running last night."

"I'll have you know, that I ended up getting a ride home from the Sheriff's son himself, so I was perfectly safe. He was worried about me running home after hearing about the body himself," she said, continuing to eat her dinner.

"The Stilinski Boy?"

"Yes, Stiles. He was leaving his house as I ran by. We talked for a bit, and he mentioned that he had overheard the call come through to his dad. When I said I should get home, he offered, insisted really, that he give me a ride home."

'Well that was very heroic of him. I hate to imagine what could have happened if you hadn't crossed paths. I'd like to thank him."

"Daddy, I'm sure that isn't necessary."

"No, I'm serious. Why don't you invite him over for dinner, this weekend? Find out his favorite meal, his favorite dessert. I'll make the meal, you'll of course make the dessert. Tell him that I insist."

Maxi groaned, but really, she wasn't too unhappy by the idea. This would give her a chance to see Stiles outside of school, away from the cliques and drama of high school. Away from prying eyes. She smiled, warming to the idea.

"Ok, I'll find out what he would like prepared, if he doesn't already have plans. It will have to be Saturday though Daddy. You know tomorrow night after the scrimmage is Lydia's party."

He shook his head, knowing about the party. "I know, I know. Saturday night it is then. Give me the details and I'll take care of the rest. 7:00 sound good?"

"Yeah, that should be fine. Promise me you'll be nice to him though. This isn't some boyfriend that I am bringing home, he's just a friend."

"Just a friend? Are we sure about that?"

"We are just friends. We don't really know each other that well."

"Maybe this will change that then," he said, getting up and putting his coffee mug in the dishwasher and his paper in the recycling. He placed a hand on Maxi's shoulder, "Don't stay up to late. Good night sweetheart."

"Night Daddy."

She finished her food, cleaning up the kitchen. She still needed to finish her homework. She made her way to her room, stopping in to say good night to Renny and check on Gabi. She had fallen asleep watching How I Met Your Mother. Maxi turned her TV off and made sure she was covered up.

When Maxi entered her room, she grabbed her book bag and laid it on the bed. She turned her iHome on low and selected a study playlist, mostly classical music. She pulled her book and paper out of the bag and got to work. About an hour later she finally finished, and put everything away. She placed her bags by the door, grabbing her MacBook on her way back to her bed. She pulled the blankets back, climbing in and snuggling down.

She opened the laptop, checking her email and then opening Facebook. She ignored all the game requests, said happy birthday on a couple of people's walls, and then started scrolling through her feed.

There was the usual stuff about first day back, lacrosse practice, and then suddenly she came across something about the party on Friday.

_Stiles Stilinski Who's got two thumbs and is going to the party on Friday night? That's right, this guy!_

Maxi laughed, shaking her head, and clicking on the box to comment.

_Maxi Taylor Who's got two thumbs and is wondering who still says "Who's  
got two thumbs" jokes? You guessed right, this gal! Nerd! :P_

_Stiles Stilinski Hey, you just used one yourself! Does that make you a  
nerd as well?_

_Maxi Taylor Against my better judgment, and I suppose it does. Shit!_

_Stiles Stilinski Well, if it makes you feel any better, you are a very hot nerd._

_Maxi Taylor Do hot nerds wear short skirts?_

_Stiles Stilinski God, I hope so!_

_Maxi Taylor Guess you'll just have to wait and see. Goodnight Stilinski_

_Stiles Stilinski Night Maxi_

Maxi closed out of Facebook, placing her laptop on the floor beside her bed. She went and brushed her teeth, washing her face afterwards. She turned off all her lights, closing her door. She turned her sleeping playlist on, white noise types of sounds, and crawled back into bed. Once she was comfortable, she kicked her socks off, and snuggled into her pillow. She fell asleep to images of Stiles in black rimmed glasses. Not a single nightmare haunted her dreams that night.

**Well, what did you think?  
Do you prefer 1****st**** or 3****rd**** POV?  
Seriously, let me know!  
Hope you guys enjoyed, lots of Stiles/Maxi there.  
Thanks to BrittWitt16 for the ship name Maxiles! ****  
As usual a huge thanks to MissECharlotte for all the help she gives me, she is  
my rock, and this chapter wouldn't have happened without her!  
Thanks to BrittWitt16, Tarafina, ChasingWolves, poorxbrokexcollegexkid, janedoee7 for your reviews, they mean everything to me!**

**Until next time! **


	4. Boy Like You

_**Ke$ha – Boy Like You  
What do I do **_

_**With a boy with a boy like you?**_

_**Got me lost got me hooked**_

_**Now I'm so confused**_

Maxi woke up ready to face the day. It was Friday, it was party night. She just had to get through a day of school, and a lacrosse scrimmage. Then she would be back in her room, getting ready for the party. Her sister would be with her, enjoying the pre-party routine.

She checked her phone, seeing that she had a text from Allison.

_Allison – Change of plans, I am going to the party tonight. WITH SCOTT! Can you help me get ready?_

_Maxi – Of course! Why don't you come home with me, then Danny can drop you off at home before the party?_

_Allison – That sounds perfect, thank you so much! _

_Maxi – No problem. See you in a bit!_

Maxi made her way into her closet, grabbing out a floral print spaghetti strap dress and a jean jacket to wear over it. She put them both on, then sat down to pull on boot socks and her boots. They were just below the knee, and of course had a heel. She put on a baby blue watch, a stack of brown bracelets, a bow ring, and a multi-chained silver necklace. She then made her way into her bathroom, weaving her hair up into a pretty up-do. After a small amount of makeup, she grabbed her bags, and made her way downstairs.

She hadn't even taken half the steps before she heard an uproar of laughter from the kitchen. Danny was early. Probably wanting breakfast. As she walked into the kitchen and set her stuff down, she caught the end of the conversation.

"The poor boy didn't know what to do. Finally said good morning!"

At that everyone started laughing again, not even realizing Maxi had entered the room.

"What is so funny?"

"Oh Maxi! Good morning sweetheart. I was just telling them about our morning visitor."

"Visitor? Who?"

"That's the thing. I have no idea who this kid was."

"Tell her the whole story Pops. I'm sure she'll get a kick out of it," Danny said, taking a bite of his omelet.

Maxi poured herself some coffee and took a seat at the bar across from Danny. He was seated next to Gabi, both eating.

"Well, I was outside, watering a few of the plants, when suddenly I heard a splash from behind me. When I turned around, there was a teenage boy in our swimming pool. Neither of us said anything at first, poor boy looked terrified though. Finally, he pops off with a good morning and goes under water. After about ten seconds, he comes up, climbs out of the pool, and just walks out of the gate! I've never seen anything like it."

By the end, all three of them were laughing loudly.

"Well, what did he look like? You said he was a teenage boy. Maybe we know him."

"Yeah, if anyone can name him, it would be Danny here."

Danny made a face at her and turned back to Mr. Taylor.

"Seriously, can you describe him?"

"It's a boy I've seen before, at lacrosse games. Usually on the bench, smaller then Renny but not the smallest out of the bunch. Dark hair, tan skin. Familiar?"

"Sounds familiar, but can't be sure," Danny said, giving Maxi a look out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh well, things happen. Kid didn't do any damage. Just hope he made it home alright."

They finished their food, cleaning up. Mr. Taylor and Gabi left, him taking her to school, then going to a work site. Maxi grabbed her coat, her bags, and followed Danny out the door.

"Coffee stop?"

"Oh my, that sounds amazing! A venti caramel macchiato with extra whip please! Yummy," she said, dancing in her seat.

Danny laughed, starting the car, and pulling out of the driveway. They made the drive to Beacon Hills Coffee and Tea. Pulling into the drive thru, Danny told the guy their order while she pulled out money to pay. Danny had paid last time, so that made it her turn.

"Do you want to get Lydia anything? Last time we stopped and didn't get her anything she was not happy."

"Yeah just order her a skinny mocha, no whip and soy milk."

They picked up their order at the window, then made the drive to school. They were discussing the most recent episode of The Bachelor when they pulled up. Danny grabbed his and Lydia's coffee and she grabbed hers and her bags. She rounded the vehicle, starting to walk to the school beside Danny. As they got closer to the bike rack, she saw Scott locking up his bike.

"Hey, I need to talk to Scott real quick. I'll meet you at your locker, ok?"

'Yeah, sure. See you there."

She watched as Danny met up with a group of guys on the stairs, then turned back towards Scott. He was still there. She walked over, stopping just behind him.

"Have a nice swim this morning?"

She watched as Scott jumped, turning towards her voice.

"Maxi! What are you talking about? How did you know that? I have no idea what you're talking about!" All of this was said very quickly, almost too quickly. But she caught it. Nice way to deny, admit, then deny again.

"Don't play like you don't know what I'm talking about. My dad told me what happened this morning, then described you, to a T. What gives? "

"Man that was your house? I'm really sorry. I don't know what happened, honestly. I fell asleep in my bedroom last night, then woke up in the woods. I thought something was chasing me, a wild animal or something. I saw the fence and just jumped. I had no idea I was going to land in a pool, especially not yours."

Maxi watched Scott as he told his side of the tale. She could tell he was being honest, could almost see the fear. He had really been scared this morning. She placed a hand on his shoulder, the 2nd day in a row she was comforting Scott in the parking lot.

"Hey, it's ok. It's like my dad said, you didn't do any damage. My dad was just worried if you got home alright or not."

"He wasn't upset?"

"Nope, not a bit. He told the story over breakfast to Danny, my sister Gabi, and me."

"Well, that's good I guess. Can we keep this between the two of us though, it's kind of embarrassing."

"Of course Scott, no problem. Danny and I both acted like we didn't know who he was talking about this morning, so I'm sure he won't ask any more questions."

"Thanks Maxi, I appreciate it. You're pretty cool."

"Thanks, you're not so bad yourself."

"I've got to find Stiles. I'll see you in class, ok?"

"No problem, I've got to meet Danny."

They walked up to school, going separate ways once inside. She reached Danny's locker to find him leaned against it, drinking his coffee, and waiting for her.

"Take it you've seen Lydia this morning?"

"Yes, and she thanks you for the morning pick me up. Said she'd get you back next time you ride together."

"Sounds good, ready to head to my locker?"

'Lead the way Taylor."

She grabbed his hand, leading him through the growing crowds in the hallway. They reached her locker, him leaning against the one next to hers. She opened it up, placing her coffee on the top shelf. She hung her purse up, then her jacket and scarf. She switched out the books from the previous day and got the ones she would need till lunch.

"So what did you need to talk to McCall for? Not someone you'd usually leave me for."

"Awe, Danny boy, there isn't a man in this world I would leave you for. You're my one and only."

"Goes both ways babe," he said, giving her a side hug.

She slammed her locker shut, and they made their way down the hall. As they turned the corner, she saw Stiles at what she assumed was his locker. Half of his body was inside of it, and he appeared to be searching through some papers.

She placed an arm out to stop Danny.

"Hey, I need to talk to Stiles. See you at lunch?"

"No guy in this world huh? Is there something I should know about?"

"Nope, nothing to know here. Bye babe."

She registered Danny saying something, but her attention was elsewhere. Once she got close, she could hear Stiles talking to himself, something about knowing he had placed the homework in here yesterday. She laughed quietly under her breath, walking closer. Once she was in reach, she placed her hands over his eyes, "Guess who."

He jumped, placing his hands over hers, but not removing them.

"Sophia Bush?"

"You wish," she said, removing her hands.

He spun around, shock written on his face. Next thing she knew, he was pinching her upper arm.

"Ouch," she said, "What the hell Stilinski?"

"They say that if you think you're dreaming, a pinch will wake you up."

She looked at him, trying to see if he was kidding or not. His face was straight. She reached over and pinched his upper arm, right about the same place he had pinched her, squeezing till he let out a yelp. "You're supposed to pinch yourself!"

"Oh, I know. Figured if it was a dream, I wouldn't have wanted to wake up anyway."

She threw her head back, laughing at the boy in front of her.

"You are seriously something else. I love it!"

He hadn't been sure if it was a compliment or a diss, until she said she loved it. That had to be a good thing.

"What brings you to my humble abode today," he said, turning back to his locker.

"What are you looking for?"

"Well, I finished my English assignment yesterday during my free period. I then placed it in said locker, and now I cannot find it! It seems to have just disappeared."

"Here, let me look," she said, pushing him aside. He raised his hands up in surrender, letting her have at it.

She peered at the locker, trying to decide where to start. She grabbed a stack of papers, handing them to Stiles. "Sort through these, and for goodness sake, if you don't need them anymore, throw them away."

"Yes ma'am."

Once that was done, she grabbed his books, setting them outside the locker on the floor beside it. She grabbed a few more papers, looking at them quickly. Seeing that most were dated back to the first semester, already graded with A's. She handed them to Stiles, telling him they were immediately to go in the trash. She heard him walk away, and kept going. She found some shirts on the bottom, assuming they were from gym. She also found a small bag, and placed the shirts inside it.

"This bag, goes home, today! Wash it, burn it, whatever you need to do. I can't even imagine what your lacrosse locker is like."

He started to protest, but a look from her cut that short. She went back to the locker, hanging up a hoodie that had been stuffed behind his books. Finally, at the bottom of his locker, sat a paper, with yesterday's date on it. It was completed, and it was his English homework. She grabbed it, standing up.

"Homework, found. How did it manage to get underneath everything that had been in here for months?"

"Who knows? Probably threw it down there while trying to find it! Thank you," he said, "I so owe you."

Hearing that, she was reminded of why she came over here in the first place.

"Speaking of which, my dad wanted to thank you for making sure I got home safe the other night. He was kind of freaked to think about me out running while a killer is on the loose."

"Oh, no big deal. Guess this makes us even?"

"Nope, not even close. He wants me to invite you over for dinner, Saturday night. Said he wouldn't take no for an answer. Favorite dinner, prepared by him. Favorite dessert, prepared by yours truly. What do you say? You up for a dinner with the Taylor family Stiles?"

He was lost for words. Dinner with the Taylors? Well, most of the Taylors. He hadn't been to the Taylor residence in over a year. Of course she didn't know that. As far as she was concerned he had only been to her house the one time, and that was just the other day. Could he really go there, without Mrs. Taylor being there? Could he really say no to Maxi?

"You don't already have plans do you? I told my dad that it was possible, but he said that plans are meant to be broken. I'll just let him know that you had something else going on and that you appreciate the offer. Maybe another time," she said, turning to walk away.

It took him a moment to realize she was walking off. She had taken 5 or 6 steps, before he snapped out of it.

"Maxi! I'd love to come to dinner."

She stopped, turning back around, a smile on her face. She made her way back over to him, "No need to get so excited, it's just dinner. What would you like?"

"Oh, um, I really don't know. We usually just eat take out, or TV dinners. I am sure any meal your dad prepares will be delicious. I've heard he's an amazing cook."

She gave him a weird look, "Oh have you? Where did you hear that?"

He realized what he said, but it was too late. Time to cover, Stiles.

"I think I've overheard Danny talking about it at practice, or Renny."

She kept giving him this contemplative look, but after a moment she shook her head, deciding to let it go.

"Well, you heard right. He's an amazing cook. I'll go through the recipe box with him, see what we can find for you. Now, what about dessert. I've seen the way you eat, there has to be a favorite dessert that instantly pops into your head."

"I cannot prejudice against any dessert. What's your specialty?"

"My specialty? Hmm… Well, I make a mean chocolate soufflé. Or I can make an angel food cake with strawberry glaze and homemade whipped cream," she said, thinking of all the things she could make.

He watched her talk about the different desserts she could make and was amazed by the way her face lit up.

"You really like this stuff huh, baking I mean."

"What? Oh, yeah, I do. It's just something to do for fun, but I love baking cookies, cakes, pies. Anything sweet really. I used to make a new recipe every week before…" she cut off, not wanting to finish the sentence. But he knew what she was going to say. Knew that she used to bake some new extravagant dessert every week. He had even tried some of them.

"Well, you think of something, new or old, and blow my mind. How's that sound?"

She smiled, glad that he hadn't pushed her to continue.

"That sounds great. Dad said dinner around 7:00 so any time before that should be fine. I'll be around most of the day, no plans but to clean up my room."

"Don't you have someone to do that for you?"

"Clean my room for me? No, actually. We have someone that comes in, like once or twice a week. Cleans the main rooms and some others, but us kids have to clean our own room. Not a problem for me, but sometimes dad has to get on Renny and Gabi."

"A teenager who likes to clean, and you say I'm weird."

Hearing the bell ring, Stiles shut his locker and they made their way to English. She noticed that people were looking at them. Some would say hi to her, others just stared. She rolled her eyes. She hated being popular sometimes.

"Everything ok?"

She turned to look at Stiles, smiling, "Yeah, everything's fine. I just hate being gawked at."

"You would think you'd be used to it by now."

She gave him a look, one that he couldn't really read.

"Do you think animals in the zoo get used to it?"

Before he could reply, they had reached English. She saw Allison walking in ahead of her.

"Allison, wait up," she said, waving to the girl.

Had he upset her? He hadn't meant too. He just kind of figured that a girl like Maxi, that had been the center of attention, miss popular for as long as he could remember, enjoyed that kind of stuff. He had never thought that maybe being constantly looked at bothered her as much as constantly being looked over bothered him.

Before she could rush off, he grabbed her hand, stopping her from leaving his side. They both stopped outside the door, looking at their joined hands. If either felt the spark that shot up their arms, neither acknowledged it.

"Hey, I'm sorry, for what I said. I didn't mean to sound like a dick. If you ever need to, I don't know, talk or something. I'm here."

She watched as his cheeks reddened, and smiled. She gave his hand a squeeze.

"Thanks Stiles. That means a lot. Now come on, let's get to class."

She released his hand, and followed Allison into the classroom, taking their seats.

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

Later that day at lunch, Maxi joined Danny, Allison, Lydia, Jackson, and a couple of other sophomore lacrosse players at their usual table. Allison and she had grabbed a salad each, Allison getting a soda and cookie. Maxi grabbing a smoothie and cup of mandarin oranges. Once they reached the table, they sat towards the middle, across from Jackson and Lydia, with Danny on Maxi's other side. They were talking about lacrosse, of course. More specifically they were talking about Scott's sudden transformation.

"Did you guys ever think that maybe he just practiced a lot since last season," Maxi asked, opening her smoothie and taking a sip.

"Yeah, or maybe he got help from somewhere else," Jackson said.

"Why can't he just be a good player," Allison asked quietly, obviously trying not to draw attention to the fact that she was sticking up for him.

"Allison, is there something you're not telling me," Lydia asked pointedly towards her.

"Lydia, give her a break. She's only been here one day. She doesn't know the rules."

"Rules? What rules," questions Allison, looking at me with wide eyes.

"Basically, there's just one. Jackson here, has to be the best. If anyone ever appears to be better, they must have done something wrong to get there. So naturally, since Scott bested Jackson yesterday, he must be on steroids or something!"

She looked across the table, to see Lydia giving her a stern look and Jackson glaring at her. She sent him a sickeningly sweet smile, before turning back to Allison.

"Only possible answer."

Allison laughed, shaking her head.

"Scott seems really nice. He was able to take care of that dog I hit last night, and he even gave me a spare shirt when he saw that I was soaking wet."

"Well, he must have done a good job if it convinced you to ditch family night and come to the party," Maxi said loudly enough for Lydia to hear.

"You're coming tonight? With Scott? Not my first choice for you, but at least you picked a lacrosse player."

Lydia continued to question Allison about Scott, while everyone else made idle chit chat. Maxi continued to eat her salad quietly, gazing around the cafeteria. Her eyes found Scott and Stiles across the lunchroom, sitting across from each other. Scott was gazing towards them, most likely watching Allison, and Stiles was faced away from her. Whatever he was talking about, he was very into it. His arms were flailing all over the place. Suddenly, he must have realized that Scott wasn't paying attention to him, because he whipped around to see what he was staring at. He saw that his gaze was on our table, and rolled his eyes. Their eyes met, and he waved. She sent a small wave back, before going back to her food.

She felt Danny lean in close, gently nudging her with his elbow.

"Thought you said there wasn't anything there. Talking between classes, waving at each other. I'm not Lydia, so I hope you're not hiding something from me in hopes of avoiding a million questions."

"There's nothing going on. He gave me a ride home the other night, when that body was found. He didn't want me walking, just to be safe. It was really sweet. He's a nice guy," she said, shrugging her shoulders.

Danny gave her a look, like he didn't believe her, but he let it go. If he continued to notice the two of them getting closer, then he would say something. They finished eating and made their way out of the cafeteria.

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

Maxi was sitting in her last class of the day, when something landed on her desk. She grabbed the crumpled up piece of paper, looking to see who had thrown it. When she looked around, she received no clue as to who had thrown it. She unrumpled it, smoothing it out.

_S – Yo, what should I wear tonight? _

Recognizing the writing from their note passing yesterday, she turned away from her homework and looked at Stiles, who was seated behind her. He was intently working on the paper, and didn't notice her watching him. She turned back around, looking at the paper.

_M – Definitely something sexy, maybe a mesh shirt, you have one right? Ooh! Some leather pants maybe_

She tried to write a little bit messier, crumpled up the paper, and dropped it over her shoulder onto his desk. Should could hear him opening it, and when he read what was on there, he let out a gasp. She covered her mouth, stifling her laughter.

"Ms. Taylor, is something on that paper funny?"

She sat up straight, looking at the teacher, "No sir, sorry."

He gave her a stern look, "I expect better out of our class president," then went back to what he was doing at his desk. She started working on her paper again, only to have the paper land on her desk again. She smiled, smoothing it out again.

_S – Haha you're a freaking comedian Madam President but that wasn't meant for you._

_M – I figured that, but I still wanted to give you some ideas some options. _

_S – I think I will ignore your ideas. _

_M – So you do own one?_

_S – NO! _

The bell rang, and as Maxi went to put the crumpled note in her bag, Stiles walked by, grabbing it and throwing it into the nearest trash can.

"Hey!"

"Nope, that should be burned. I don't need people thinking I own something like that. Because I don't."

She laughed, following him out of the classroom.

"Heading to the lacrosse field?"

"No, not yet. Scrimmage doesn't start for 30 minutes, and I was in such a rush this morning, that I left my lacrosse jersey at home. Going to run home and get it real quick. You?"

"Meeting Allison in the library. Going to get as much of our homework done."

"You're not going to the scrimmage? I'd think you'd want to be there for Renny and Danny."

"And you," she asked, looking at him out of the corner of her eye.

He stuttered, not trying to hint at anything, "I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to. You're not very good at fishing Stiles. If you have something to ask me, just ask me. I'll be at the scrimmage, don't worry. You better hurry if you plan to be back in time though."

He checked his watch, realizing they'd been talking for almost 10 minutes.

"Shit. I'll see you later," he said, turning to rush down the hallway.

Stiles made it to his jeep and peeled out of the parking lot. When he got to his house, he slammed the jeep into park, and ran inside. He went to his room, finding his jersey on the back of his computer chair. He'd been up most of the night, researching wolves and anything related. He had planned to tell Scott about it, but then at school everything had seemed so normal, that he kept it to himself. As he was making his way back down the stairs, he heard his dad talking in the kitchen. He stopped just outside the door, wanting to hear who he was talking too. He was on the phone.

"Are they sure? No other information came from it but that?"

His dad went silent, listening to the person on the other end.

"I understand. But a wolf, here in California? It just doesn't make sense."

Stiles didn't listen any longer. He rushed out of the house, in a hurry to get back to school. He had to tell Scott.

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

Maxi was making her way to the library, she turned the corner only to see Jackson slamming Scott's locker shut. Not wanting to get involved in their drama again, she stayed where she was, peering around the corner.

"All right little man. How about you tell me where you're getting your juice," Jackson said.

Maxi rolled her eyes. He couldn't possibly believe that Scott was taking drugs.

"What?"

"You heard me. Where are you getting your juice?"

"My mom does all the grocery shopping."

At that Maxi almost blew her cover. Oh poor naive Scott.

"Now, listen McCall, you're going to tell me exactly what it is and who you're buying from, because there's no way in hell you're out there kicking ass on the field like that without some sort of chemical boost."

"Oh, you mean steroids. Are you on steroids?"

At this Maxi had to wonder. Maybe Jackson was on steroids, which would explain his horrible mood swings.

Suddenly, Jackson grabbed Scott, slamming him into the locker. Maxi covered her mouth, hoping this didn't get violent.

"What the hell is going on with you, McCall?'

Suddenly, it was like Scott had had enough. "What's going on with me? You really wanna know? Well so would I," he yelled, "Because I can see, hear, and smell things that I shouldn't be able to see, hear, and smell. I do things that should be impossible, I'm sleepwalking three miles into the middle of the woods, and I'm pretty much convinced that I'm totally out of my freaking mind!"

Scott sighed, like he had just lifted a huge load off his chest. Jackson laughed at him.

"You think you're funny. Don't you McCall? I know you're hiding something. I'm going to find out what it is. I don't care how long it takes," he said, hitting the locker beside his head before hitting his arm and walking off.

Scott stood there, relieved that was over and that no one else had been witness to that scene.

"Well, that was scary!"

Scott jumped, turning to see Maxi walking towards him.

"Are you stalking me," he said, not even thinking about it.

"Hmmm, interesting thought but no. I was just trying to get to the library, and really didn't want to get involved in another Scott vs. Jackson debacle. I was a little worried it was going to turn violent. Hopefully he saves it for the field."

Maxi didn't say anything else, just continued past him, hearing as he hit his head against the locker.

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

Maxi grabbed Allison from the library, apologizing for taking so long. When she asked why, she'd just said she'd got caught up. She didn't think Scott would want Allison knowing about what had just happened.

As they reached the field, Maxi saw Stiles running to catch Scott, yelling at him. She couldn't hear what he was saying, but he didn't look happy. Stiles kept trying to talk to Scott, but Scott didn't seem like he wanted to hear it. Stiles nearly chased him onto the field, but stopped short. Maxi and Allison continued to the bleachers, Allison pausing to wave at Scott.

They took their seats, watching as Coach made a speech.

The first scrimmage started and immediately Jackson was on Scott. He knocked him down and Allison jumped up, worried he'd been hurt. Maxi grabbed her arm, pulling her back down.

"He's fine. That is something you better get used to if you're going to date a lacrosse player. They get hit. They get hit hard."

Allison sat down, seeing that Scott jumped right back up. It wasn't soon before he was racing down the field, bobbing and weaving through players, then flipping over a few to score. The crowd was on its feet, as was the sidelines. The only people that didn't seem excited were Jackson, of course, and Stiles. Immediately Coach called Scott over. It looked like he was yelling at him, but then he clapped Scott on the shoulder and Scott started doing some sort of awkward happy dance. Guess he'd made first line.

The first scrimmage ended, and then the second. It was nearly 5 when they ended, and Scott was picking Allison up at 8. She was anxious to get to my house so she could start getting ready.

They were on their way to the car, when Maxi saw Isaac unchaining his bike. She told Allison to hold on a minute and made her way over to him.

"Isaac, hey! Good job out there today."

"Thanks."

She let out an exasperated sigh, finally reaching him. He had got his bike unchained and was climbing on.

"Hey, are you working tonight? Lydia's having a party, if you can, you should stop by."

"I'm not welcome at those parties. I'm just gravedigger Lahey to those kids, and you know it. Would you please just stop?"

"Stop what? Trying to be your friend? I haven't stopped yet, so why would I now? You can keep pushing me away, but I'm not going anywhere. Eventually, you'll realize that. Offer still stands, if you can, you should come to the party."

She walked off before he could say anything else. She grabbed Allison and they got in the truck. It was one of the few Fridays Renny would get off, so he was off to get alcohol with his friend for the party. He would then take it to Lydia's and help her get everything set up with Jackson and whoever else she roped into helping. Danny and Maxi would show up a little before to help with any last minute details. He dropped them off in the driveway, and then pulled off. The minute Allison and Maxi walked through the door, Gabi was on them.

"Finally! I have been waiting for hours for you to get here. Come on," and without even being introduced, she grabbed a hand of each girl and dragged them up the stairs. When they got in the bedroom, Gabi let go, heading for Maxi's closet.

"Do you know what you're going to wear Max?"

"Um Gabi, this is my friend, Allison. Allison my tornado of a sister, Gabi. She likes to help me get ready for stuff like tonight. Hope you don't mind."

"No, I don't mind. I always wanted a little sister. Maybe you can help me too. I have a date tonight!"

Gabi squealed, "Oh that is so great! You have to look perfect then. Did you bring anything or are you borrowing from Maxi?"

"She is borrowing from me. I have a pair of jeans that will look great on you."

"Then I think we should do a really cute frilly top, with a nice cardigan," Gabi said, already searching through the closet.

"Did you want to shower or anything? Bathroom is through there, and there's fresh towels on the rack."

Allison made her way to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Gabi came out of the closet, placing a shirt and blazer on the bed.

"I gave up on the cardigan when I found the blazer. She'll look really pretty in it."

"Thanks Gabi, you're always such a big help. You have a really good eye for this stuff."

"Thanks Maxi. So, what about you?"

"Oh, I don't know. I haven't really decided. Probably just a skirt and top. The usual."

"Not your outfit, though we'll get back to that. Do you have a date?"

Maxi smiled to herself, thinking about Stiles.

"A smile, you do have a date!"

"No Gabi, no date. But I did invite a friend to come, so maybe I'll get to hang out with him tonight."

"A friend? Do you, like, this friend?"

"I don't know, I think I could. I think I could a lot."

Maxi made her way into the closet, looking for what she would wear. Now that she was thinking about Stiles being there, she was determined to look as cute as possible, because she was being honest, she really did think she could like a guy like him.

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

After Allison got out of the shower, Maxi blow dried her hair, placing it in some curlers, while Gabi painted her nails. They talked about Scott and how much Allison seemed to really like him. Gabi was having such a good time, enjoying having the girl time.

"Man, I can't wait till I'm as old as you guys. It's going to be so much fun, going to parties and just getting all pretty to go out."

"Yeah, that's what you think. I bet Dad is stricter with you when this time comes. You won't have the older sibling that's been told to keep an eye on you. He's going to be so paranoid!"

Gabi froze, realizing her sister had a good point. She still had 4 years till she would even be able to think about going out, and now she was almost scared to be that age. Watching her sister, she wished that they were closer in age, like her and Renny. Then she would have her there to keep an eye on her.

"So Maxi, did you decide what you are going to wear," Allison asked, finishing up her makeup at the vanity.

"What do you think about this?"

She pulled out a sequined animal print skirt and a matching low cut purple blouse.

"That is going to look really good! What about your hair? Anything special," Allison wondered, spinning in front of the mirror.

"Think after I shower, I will just blow dry, straighten, and then put it in a low ponytail. Slick my bangs to the side?"

They both shook their head, Gabi busy looking through my box of nail polish. Allison was sitting on the bed, all ready to go, and phone in hand.

"Who are you texting?"

"Scott."

Maxi laughed, "If you aren't careful, you won't have anything to talk about tonight."

"Who said anything about talking?"

Maxi gasped, laughing and looking to Gabi. She looked at the two of them, "I won't say anything."

"Are you still a, "Maxi blushed, "a virgin?"

Allison blushed as well, looking to Gabi who really wasn't paying attention, then back to Maxi. "Yeah, is that weird?"

"Weird? Why would you think it's weird?"

"I don't know. Most girls I've talked to about this, weren't. Are you?"

"Yeah, still a proud member of the virginity club. I know a lot of people aren't but I've always wanted to wait, wanted it to be with someone special. I've never had those, wait till marriage beliefs, but I don't want it to be with some boy I barely know or someone I'm not going to remember when I'm 50. You know what I mean?"

Allison shook her head, completely understanding. She felt the same way. "Let's get you ready! Go take your shower, I'm going to do your sisters nails while you're in there."

Gabi looked up, getting excited and back into the conversation. "Awesome! Can you do designs?"

Maxi laughed, making her way into the bathroom and shutting the door. Once she was out of the shower, she blow dried and straightened her hair, using some product to slick it into the low ponytail. Once her hair was done, she dressed, adjusting her top so that it was open to just the top of her bra, showing her cleavage but still keeping her covered. When she stepped out of the bathroom, it was to oohs and awe's.

"You look hot," Allison cheered, gesturing for her to spin. She did as asked, still barefoot. "What shoes are you going to wear?"

She made her way to the closet, grabbing a pair of pantyhose socks and putting those on her feet. Once those were on, she found her pair of Alexander McQueen booties that Lydia had got her for Christmas this year. She had yet to wear them and had been waiting for just the right occasion. She was deeming that night, tonight. She grabbed some silver and purple bracelets and put those on one wrist, leaving the other empty. She then sat down, doing her makeup. A smoky but sparkly eye, a pink lip, and a little bit of blush.

"Maxi, you have a nail polish that will perfectly match that, can I do your nails?"

She sat down across from Gabi, and held her hands out, "Have at it sis."

They were almost done with Maxi's nails when they heard someone coming up the steps. Danny didn't even bother knocking, he just entered.

"Ladies, the party has arrived."

Gabi thrust the nail polish into Allison's hand, and made for Danny. She threw herself at him, hugging him around the neck. He caught her, and then she was showing him her nail polish and asking if it looked nice.

"Gabs you always look beautiful." She blushed, always loving the attention Danny gave her. "Are you two about ready? It's already 7:30." Allison looked at the clock, and then quickly finished the last nail on Maxi's hand.

"I have to hurry. I can't be late for Scott to pick me up!"

Once the nails were done, Maxi blew on them, hoping to hurry the process up. Danny told them both how beautiful they looked, telling them the boys better be prepared.

Once they were done, they made their way downstairs. Their dad was in the living room, watching the news.

"Well don't you look lovely?"

"Awe, thanks Pops," Danny said, patting the man on the chest. Hank rolled his eyes, looking at the boy. He was dressed in jeans and a polo, a usual look for him.

"You like nice as well Danny. Heading out?"

"Yeah, we have to drop Allison back off at her house so her date can then pick her up there."

"Home by curfew, ok? Renny will bring you home. Be safe."

She placed a kiss on top of her dads head, said bye to Gabi and they headed out. They headed to Allison's first, dropping her off so she could wait for Scott.

"See you in a little bit. Have fun tonight!"

She waved, making her way to the house. Danny pulled off, driving the few blocks to Lydia's house. When they pulled up, there were already a couple of vehicles there. Danny took his spot in the driveway and they made their way into the house. Walking in, they were welcomed by Lydia directing people around. They could hear her, but they couldn't see her.

Maxi looked to Danny, and at the same time they said, "Patio."

They made their way outside, seeing a DJ set up, the bar in the corner, and lights placed about. She saw Renny and a friend of his setting up the bar, while Jackson and Lydia were off to the side arguing about something.

"Hey, Lydia, anything I can do to help?"

"Yes! Leave these boys to set up, and go with me to get ready. I've been so busy delegating that I haven't got dressed yet."

Without another word, Lydia made her way inside. Before Maxi could follow, Jackson stopped her. "Maxi, do me a favor. Make sure my girlfriend has more clothes on then you. I'd hate for people to get the wrong idea about both of you."

She gave him a glare, flipped him off, and watched as Danny smacked Jackson in the back of the head.

"What the hell is wrong with you," she heard Danny ask him.

Satisfied that Danny was handling him, she made her way inside, heading to Lydia's room. When she walked in, Lydia was standing in front of her bed, two dresses laid out. One was a color blocked fuchsia, golf, and black and the other was a simple skin tight hunter green dress.

"What do you think? Which one is my best option for tonight? Which one will have the boys wishing they had me and the girls wishing they were me?"

"Honestly, I'm pretty sure you know that either dress will do that. Hell, a black trash bag would do that but, I think the green dress is prettier. Plus, it's shorter, tighter, and will make your legs look killer. Throw a pair of nude pumps in and you're set. Curl the hair, smoky eye, no one will be able to keep their eyes, or hands off you."

Without a word, Lydia grabbed the green dress and started to change. While she did that, Maxi grabbed the other dress and put it back in her closet. Lydia would be so upset if she left it laying around and it got wrinkled. Once the dress was on, Maxi sat her down and curled her hair and did her make up. She didn't bother telling her about Jacksons comment, it wouldn't do any good.  
They were almost done with her make up when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and in walked Danny. Lydia turned, smiling up at him. "Danny, what brings you up to my room?"

He brought two shot glasses and a bottle of patron out from behind his back. "Thought you two might like a shot. People are starting to show up."

He set the glasses down, pouring some of the alcohol into each.

"Well I guess I haven't done my lipstick yet, why not? Right Maxi?"

Maxi shook her head, grabbing one of the glasses.

Lydia raised hers and clinked them together, "Here's to finding you a guy."

Maxi rolled her eyes, but threw the shot back. It burned but still tasted good.

"Good," Danny asked.

They shook their heads yes, then shooed Danny out so they could finished getting Lydia ready. Once Lydia was done, she insisted on touching up Maxi's make up. Finally, she deemed them ready to grace the party with their presence.

Xxxxx*****xxxxxx*****xxxxX

By the time Lydia and Maxi got downstairs, the patio was filling up quickly. She could see people at the keg, a line forming of course. She looked for Renny, hoping he would make her something fruity. She found him, tending bar for the moment. She told Lydia where she was going, who told her she was going to find Jackson. They went their separate ways, promising to catch up later. When she reached Renny, he immediately handed her a drink.

"What's in it?"

"A little of this, a little of that. Just know that you will like it and it won't kick you in the ass."

She smiled, appreciating that he wasn't a total buzzkill when it came to this kind of stuff. He knew she was going to drink and he would rather be the one giving it to her, knowing what and how much was in the cup. She thanked him, then went off to find Danny. She didn't find him right away but she did find a group of girls she considered friends. They were in the middle of the dance floor, dancing and drinking. She kept glancing towards the door, seeing Scott and Allison show up. She waved, letting them know she had saw them. They looked so cute together. They got drinks and then made their way to the dance floor as well. She stayed where she was, but kept watching the door. She felt someone come up behind her, placing a hand on her waist.

"Expecting someone," Danny asked her as they danced.

"Why do you ask that?"

"Every time I have looked over at you, you have been looking at the door. You're going to give yourself whiplash. Is this about that Stilinski kid?"

She turned away, not wanting him to see the blush she could feel rising on her cheeks. Before anything else could be said, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the house. He walked around until he found a quiet corner they could talk in.

"Alright, what's the deal? It's been a long time since you've shown any interest in a guy. Matt ring a bell? Is that what's going on here? Are you interested in Stilinski? You know you can tell me anything, right?"

"Of course Danny, but right now, there really isn't anything to tell. Before break, he and I hadn't said 3 words to each other. But now, there's just something about him. I like him. I don't know how I like him yet, but I definitely want to get to know him better. He's just, so different from all the other guys that are always trying to have a go at me. He's sweet, and funny, and seems to really want to get to know me, not just get at me. I think at the least, he could be a really good friend."

"You know he's not really part of our circle. Aren't you worried about what people are going to say? What your other best friend is going to say?"

"What are you going to say? You're part of that circle too. Are you going to judge me if I hang out with someone outside of it Danny," she asked, looking at the ground. He placed a finger under her chin and lifted her head up till she was looking him in the eyes.

"I am your best friend. I would never judge you because you want to hang out with someone different. I trust you. If you see something in this kid, then it's probably there. You've hardly ever steered me wrong before."

"Well, then that's really all that matters. I know Lydia won't be happy about it, but I can handle her. And as far as everyone else, who cares?"

"Alright, that solves that. Just keep me posted if that friendship changes into something more, ok?"

"Promise, after me, you'll be the first one to know," she hugged him after that, thankful that she had someone like Danny in her corner.

"Let's go get you a refill."

They made their way back to the bar, Danny making her a rum and coke since she didn't see Renny around. They grabbed the bottle of patron, both taking a quick swig from it, then put it back where they had hid it.

They went and danced some more, together, with the group, and with whoever was around. Lydia came out and they danced together for a little bit, they even got to hang out with Scott and Allison. They were being so cute, dancing super close and just being in their own little world. Lydia eventually left to go off with Jackson somewhere, and Maxi needed another refill. Danny led her off the floor, stopping by the bar. They both decided against any more shots, and just refilled their cups. She made Danny go light on the rum this time, as she didn't want to get super drunk, just lightly buzzed. Danny had just finished refilling her cup and they were walking towards the dance floor, when suddenly someone rushed past causing some of Maxi's drink to get on her shirt.

"Hey dick, watch where you're going!" The guy looked at her over his shoulder, but didn't stop. "What an asshole."

"Hey, you ok," she heard from behind her. She turned to find her brother walking towards her. Danny had continued on his way to the dance floor, finding a very cute boy to dance with.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Some jerk just ran me over, spilling my drink."

"How many of those have you had," he said, lifting the cup up to his nose.

"This is only my third, thank you," she said, leaving out the total of 3 shots of patron she had had, "It's not like I'm driving."

"I know, I'm just looking out for you. No letting anyone else get you drinks but Danny and you, no leaving it unattended."

"Renny, I know," she said, looking over his shoulder. There was a cute blonde staring this way, and she didn't think she was looking at her.

"I need to go clean myself up, but there's a very pretty girl eyeing you. Go talk to her. I'm fine." She pushed him towards the girl before making her way inside. She had almost reached the bathroom when another body bumped into her. She was really getting tired of this. Before she saw who it was, she started to go off.

"Listen here asshole. I get that I am tiny, but I am not invisible. Watch where the f..."

"Whoa, Maxi, it's just me. I was actually looking for you. Sorry for bumping into you," Stiles said, spinning her towards him, "I take it this has happened more than once tonight?"

The angry look on her face instantly turned into a huge smile. "Stiles, you made it," she said, throwing her arms around him. He hugged her back, before she quickly let go, and grabbed his hand pulling him behind her.

"Where are we going," he asked, sounding nervous.

"Some jerk made me spill my drink on my shirt. I need to clean up before the shirt stains and I get all sticky."

They reached the upstairs bathroom, the one reserved for friends, and she directed Stiles inside, shutting the door behind them. She opened the cabinet and pulled out a wash cloth. She jumped up onto the sink, turning the tap on. Stiles stood in front of her, watching her as she worked. Once the rag was wet, she started to gently dab at the spot on her shirt. Stiles watched as she did this, mesmerized by the action. The more she dabbed at it, the wetter her shirt got. He was trying his hardest to not stare, but he was only a 16 year old boy after all.

"This isn't working. I think I might have to take it off."

At this Stiles, looked up at her, only to find her staring back at him. "That caught your attention."

"What?"

"You zoned out for a moment. I said your name a few times, but got nothing."

"Oh, sorry about that. It happens."

She laughed, going back to dabbing at her shirt. She then moved the wash cloth to wipe at her chest, and Stiles found himself wishing he was that washcloth.

"Can you help me take my shoe off?"

"Huh? Oh! Yeah, of course." He lifted the foot she'd nodded to onto his knee, unstrapping it, and handing it to her.

"Thank you. You're such a gentleman."

"That's me. Knight in shiny blue armor," he said, referring to what she had said the night he drove her home, really hoping she remembered.

"My knight in shiny blue armor," she said, emphasizing on the MY.

She took the wash cloth, carefully wiping the alcohol off the shoe.

"Who bumped into you?"

"Who knows? Some older looking guy. Definitely didn't look like he belonged at a high school party."

Once she was done wiping the shoe off, she hopped off the counter, getting into the cabinets again. She pulled out a blow dryer, plugging it in, and drying her shoe and shirt. She sat back on the counter and went to put the shoe back on her foot, but before she could Stiles had grabbed her shoe, motioning for her to put her foot on his knee again. He cradled her ankle, carefully putting her foot back into the shoe. She swallowed deeply, enjoying his touch.

"Maybe I should be calling you Prince Charming."

He laughed, holding his hands out to her. She took them and hopped off the counter. Once both her feet were on the ground, Stiles opened the door and they walked out. They made their way back downstairs, going to the kitchen. He led the way and didn't let go of her hand till they reached their destination.

"Do you need a drink," she asked him over the music, having to lean in close for him to hear her.

"Oh, no thanks. I'm driving."

She smiled at him, proud that he wasn't giving in to the peer pressure of everyone around him drinking.

"Do you want to dance then," she asked, gesturing towards the patio outside.

"I can't promise anything, but I'll try not to do any bodily harm."

When they reached the floor an upbeat song was playing. Stiles just kind of stood there, unsure of what to do. She realized this was probably new for him, especially if he didn't get invite to these things. She decided to make him feel better, and started dancing. Normal at first, just a back and forth motion. But then she got a little sillier, a little more flamboyant. Stiles looked at her, unsure of what she was doing.

"Come on, dance with me. Don't make me look silly all by myself."

Finally, he seemed to stop caring about the rest of the people, who weren't even really paying attention to them and started to move. He was slow at first, just kind of bobbing his head, but eventually he got into it and started to do old dance moves, making her laugh. She was so caught up in watching him and laughing that she didn't notice that the fast upbeat song, had turned into a slow one. Stiles looked like he was going to walk back off the floor, so she grabbed his wrist, moving his hand to her waist. Once one hand was situated, he took the lead and placed his other on the opposite side. She placed her hands around his neck, pulling him closer.

"I should have said this sooner, but you look beautiful."

She blushed, laying her forehead on his shoulder. "Thank you. You look very dashing yourself."

"This old thing. It was this or a mesh shirt and leather pants, figured what the hell, go big or go home, right?"

She laughed, enjoying his sense of humor. The song ended but they didn't separate.

As they stood there, still dancing, she shivered. She should have known better then to wear a sleeveless shirt and a tiny skirt in January. Stiles must have noticed, because the next thing she knew, he was taking his jacket off.

"Here, you look cold."

Before she could say anything, he was draping it over her shoulders. She pushed her arms through the sleeves, rolling the ends up a bit.

"Thank you. You're sweet, you know that," she said, stepping back towards him to continue dancing.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?"

Suddenly, Stiles took two very big steps back, making sure his hands were no longer anywhere on her body. She rolled her eyes at him, but turned to Renny. "Yeah, sure. Stiles, I'll be right back. Don't go too far, okay?"

He shook his head, "I'm just going to go get a soda," he said, giving Renny a nod of recognition before quickly walking off.

"Must you be so intimidating?"

"Me? I didn't even do anything! I just came over here to see if you could find a ride home. I'm going to head out with Lisa."

"Yeah, that should be no problem. If anything, I'll just crash here. No big deal."

"Oh, before I forget, have you seen him yet?"

"Seen who? You'll have to be more specific, this is a party, with lots of people."

"Hale."

"What? Laura or Derek? Did you talk to them?"

"You must be drunk. I said him and I just saw Derek a bit ago. Said hi, but he seemed like he was a little preoccupied so I let him be. "

"Derek is back? I wonder why. When they left, they were pretty set about not coming back and last I saw Peter, there hadn't been any change."

"Maybe you should go check on him. How longs it been since your last visit?"

"Just a few weeks. I try to go at least every other week, but got busy with the holidays. Dad and I had fresh flowers sent over right around Christmas. I'll try and go by this week. Wonder if Dad knows he's back. I hope Laura's with him! Her random post cards and yearly phone calls just weren't enough communication."

"It would be nice to see her again. I bet she's still just as beautiful as the day she left."

"Oh keep dreaming brother. She's way too old for you! Pretty sure she's told you that time and time again before everything happened."

"Whatever! I'm going to head out. Make sure you have a ride. If you really need me, text me. I'll meet you at home before curfew. Love you little bit," he gave her a hug and walked off to where said Lisa girl was waiting. She threw her a wave and wrapped her arm around Renny's waist. She watched them walk out of the party, before turning to go find Stiles again.

He was where he said he would be, standing off to the side of the bar. He was with a group of kids she recognized, but had never really spoke with. She walked up beside Stiles, nudging him with her hip.

"Hey, everything ok with your brother?"

"Yeah, just letting me know he was leaving with some girl. Wanted to know if I could find another ride home," she looked away for a minute, wondering if she should ask or wait for him to offer. Before she could make up her mind, he was speaking.

"I can take you home. My dad's working the night shift, so I don't really have a curfew to worry about. What's yours?"

"I have to be home by 1:00, but I'm usually home before that."

They stayed with the group, talking about stuff that Maxi hadn't dreamed she'd be talking about at this party. They talked about sports, football mostly. Everyone was overly surprised when she had stuff to contribute to the talk. They had just started debating the Manning brothers, when suddenly they were nearly knocked over by what appeared to be a frantic Scott.

"Hey Scott, buddy, you ok?"

He didn't answer, just kept rushing out of the party. They saw Allison rush by next, and that is when they decided to follow them and see what was going on.

As they got outside, they saw Scott getting in his car and driving off. They caught up to Allison at the end of the drive way, where she stood confused.

"Did I do something wrong?"

Stiles spoke up, "He wasn't feeling well after practice today. I'm sure it's nothing you did. Maxi, I'm sorry, but can you find another way home? I have to go check on him. You too Allison?"

Maxi placed a hand on Stiles' shoulder, "Hey, its fine. Go check on Scott, make sure he's ok. I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

"Of course, wouldn't miss it for anything."

They stood and watched as Stiles made his way to his jeep down the street. They were getting ready to go back inside, when they heard someone walk up behind them.

"Allison, I'm a friend of Scotts. Do you still need a ride home?"

They both turned around, Maxi realizing who it was. "So you're the asshole who bumped into me earlier, and had no regards for me or my outfit!"

"Come on Maxine, that's not what you called me when we were little. If I recall, you always called me D."

"Well, maybe the D now stands for dick! What the hell Derek? Did you realize it was me when you ran me down or did you just not care?"

"Actually, I didn't realize it was you until I ran into Renny. I am sorry but it seems like you got all cleaned up and problem solved right?"

"I suppose. You're lucky I was able to. These shoes are suede and my friend just got them for me for Christmas. You would have owed me a hefty fee if they got ruined."

He rolled his eyes, not used to this Maxine. When everything had happened and Laura and he had left, she had been this quiet little 10 year old. Now she was all grown up and definitely not afraid to speak up for herself.

"So, do you guys need a ride home? Looks like both your rides left you here."

"Actually, yeah, that would be really nice. Allison, do you want to just come back to my house? Then we can take you home tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I am sure that is fine. Just let me text my parents."

"This way ladies," Derek said, placing a hand on each of their backs.

As they walked to the car, both girls were texting on their phone. Allison with her parents and Maxi with Danny. Danny promised to let Lydia know that she had left. They reached a black Camaro and Maxi whistled.

"Nice car."

He opened the passenger door, moving the seat so Allison could climb in the back and then waiting for Maxi to get in before he shut it. He made his way around and into the driver's seat, not pulling off till both were buckled in.

"Are either of you drunk enough to puke? I'd really hate to clean that up later."

"Were both fine. Do you need me to give you directions? We don't live in the same place as before."

"No, Laura had me mail a couple of those postcards she was always sending off for her. I have a pretty good idea of where I am going."

"So, where have you guys been? What are you guys doing back in town? Have you been to see Peter yet? How long are you guys staying?"

"You sure do talk a lot more then you did as a kid. What changed?"

"I grew up, and I no longer have a huge crush on you. That really helps open a girl up," she said, sending him a smile.

"No more crush? Man I must be losing my touch."

She laughed, then realized they were pulling into her driveway. She climbed out, letting Allison out of the backseat.

"Thanks for the ride D. Have you let Dad know you guys are back yet?"

"No, I haven't had a chance. I'm not sure if I will anytime soon either. Feel free to let him know I'm around, I'll try and stop by. Have you been visiting Peter still?"

"I try to go as often as possible but I'm a busy teenage girl. Only get up there once a month or so, if I'm lucky. Last I was there, was after Thanksgiving and there was no change. I'm sorry. You should go see him, maybe a family member will stimulate something."

He shook his head, letting her know he really didn't want to talk about it.

"Alright, well, thanks for the ride, again. We really appreciate it."

"Yeah, thank you. I was worried we were stuck there," Allison said, reminding us she was still there.

"See you later Derek."

He waited till they were inside the house, then pulled out.

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

Shortly after they got to the house, Renny got home as well. The girls had both changed into sleeper shorts and a cami and were in the living room snuggled up together under a blanket. They had got some food to help sober them up and were now watching some chick flick. Allison wasn't in a very good mood. Scott wasn't replying to her texts and she was worried about him but she was also mad that he had just left her there. She had asked Maxi to text Stiles and check in with him, but this brought her to the realization that she didn't even have his number.

They were about halfway through the movie, when they heard a knock at the door. Renny looked at the two of them from his spot on the loveseat, then got up to go answer the door. When he got to the door, he looked through the peep hole, seeing the kid from earlier tonight pacing in and out of his view. He watched as he came back and knocked again, this time more frantic then the last. Renny swung the door opening, frightening the kid.

"Renny, hey! We met earlier tonight, sort of, I was dancing with your sister Maxi. I'm a friend of hers, Stiles. Were actually on the same team, lacrosse, at school. This is going to sound really weird, but is she here? Did she make it home ok?"

"Didn't she ask you for a ride home," Renny asked, stepping out onto the porch. He was going to have some fun.

"What? No! She didn't ask me. I mean, I offered to take her home. But I didn't. Something came up, and I had to go check on a friend. Is she not here?"

"If you didn't give her a ride, and you don't know how she got home, why are you assuming she's here?"

"When I drove off, I saw Allison and her with Derek, Derek Hale. He was walking them to his car. I just assumed, he brought them home."

Interesting, thought Renny. They had ran into each other after all. "Why would you let some old guy take them home? What was so wrong with your friend, that you just left my sister and her friend there, yet alone let them get into a car with a guy you don't even know? Does that sound very safe?"

"Oh god! Renny, are they here? Did he bring them home? Should I call my dad, have him put out an APB for his car? I can do that, I'll do that, right now," he said, pulling out his cell phone. Before he could dial Renny grabbed the phone, and hit end. He then stepped back, opening the door.

"Maxi! You have a visitor. Some kid spazzing out about how you got home. Can you please come take care of this? It's giving me a headache," he said, giving Stiles an evil grin. He handed the phone back to the kid, then stepped inside as Maxi reached the door.

When she saw it was Stiles, she stepped outside, glad she had on slippers. Then she realized what else she was wearing. She had put Stiles' blazer on over her pajamas. Stiles seemed to realize what she was wearing as well. He looked her over, swallowing deeply.

"Is that, my blazer? Over your pajamas?"

"Yes, it was just really warm, and honestly it smelled like you. You wear really nice cologne. Here, you can have it back," she said, going to take it off.

"No," he said, putting his hands on her upper arms, stopping her movement, "its cold out. Keep it. I'll get it later." He wasn't sure he could stand staring at her in her pajamas. From what he could see, it was just a small tank top and shorts. Man, he would have to remember this image later.

She smiled, snuggling deeper into the blazer. "Thanks. So, what are you doing here Stiles?"

"Oh, right. Well, I just wanted to make sure you got home safe. I realized I didn't have your number so I couldn't text you, and I didn't want to try and search for a home phone number and wake up your entire house, so I just came over."

"And pounded on my front door, possibly waking my entire house?"

He rubbed the back of his neck, "yeah I didn't really think of that. Sorry."

"Well, as you can see, we made it here safely. A family friend was at the party, and he offered us a ride home. We've been home for about an hour or so."

"Good, good. I thought that guy you were talking to when I left brought you home, and I got a little worried."

"He did bring us home. That's Derek. Our dads used to be business partners, before the fire. I'm sure you remember them."

"Derek Hale? Derek is a family friend?"

"Yeah, since we were all little. Probably before that. Our parents all grew up together here."

Stiles rubbed his head, he could feel a headache coming on. Did this mean she knew what Derek was? What Scott now was? She didn't seem like it, but you could never tell.

Suddenly, she grabbed his hand and pulled him into the house, "Wait here."

She made her way into what appeared to be the living room, and came back.

"Give me your cell phone, please?"

He grabbed it back out of his jeans pocket, handing it to her. He watched as she hit buttons, then suddenly she took a picture of herself. Then he heard a vibrating sound. She held up her phone, typed on it, hit some buttons, and then said, "Smile."

He did as he was told, smiling for the camera. She took a picture of him on her phone, then continued typing on his. After a moment, she gave his phone back to him. She continued to type on hers, until his buzzed. When he looked at his screen, there was her face, as well as the name Maxi with a star in front of it. He clicked answer, and held the phone to his ear.

"There, now you have my number. You can call and check up on me, instead of showing up at 1:00 in the morning. Much more practical. And I have yours, see," she said, holding her screen out to him. There was his face, with a star before his name just like she did for her name.

"What's with the star?"

"Oh! It puts that name at the top of the list. Easier to find."

"You could have just set you up as a speed dial."

"Oh, I don't think we're at the point in our relationship where we assign speed dial numbers. Not yet Stilinski. You have to earn that," she said, sending him an almost devilish smile.

He started to say something back, when Allison joined them in the foyer.

"Stiles? Hey, is Scott okay? He's not answering my text or calls."

"Allison, hey, yeah he's fine. He passed out shortly after I checked on him. He just wanted me to come make sure you had made it home safe. But you're here! I'll let him know in the morning when I talk to him. I hope you're not too mad at him. He was really torn up about leaving you there like that."

She crossed her arms, trying to show she was upset. "He could have told me he wasn't feeling well, I wouldn't have forced him to go. We could have rescheduled."

"He was so excited to go out with you, he was afraid there wouldn't be another time. Just talk to him at school on Monday, let him explain."

She shook her head, then turned to Maxi, "I'm going to head up. See you in a few," she asked, shooting Stiles a look, then looking back to Maxi. Maxi shook her head, saying she'd be right up.

They both watched as Allison walked up the stairs, before turning back to each other.

"Well, guess that's my cue to go. I'll see you tomorrow then."

He made for the door, Maxi behind him.

He stepped out onto the front porch, turning back when Maxi said his name. She had taken off the blazer, and had folded it over her arm.

"Here, you should take this with you. I'd hate for it to get lost in my closet and never returned," she said, holding it out to him.

She waited for him to grab it, but he just stood there. She smiled, realizing he was admiring her body.

"Stiles, as much as I appreciate your admiration, I should get inside. It's getting a little cold."

Hearing her say how cold it was, snapped him out of his gawking. He grabbed the blazer, "Sorry, yeah, get inside. I'll see you tomorrow. Anything I can bring?"

"Well, since your underage and can't bring wine, I'll have to say no. Just yourself and an appetite."

"See you tomorrow Maxi," he said, making his way down the stairs and to his jeep.

"Night Stiles."

Maxi made her way back inside, closing the door behind her. She stood there for a moment, before running up the stairs to her room. She expected to find Allison asleep in the king size bed, but she was just sitting there, like she was waiting for her.

"Alright, spill."

Xxxxx*****xxxxx*****xxxxX

**Well, there we go! Lots of Stiles/Maxi goodness in there.  
Hard to believe this story is already at 25 reviews, you guys are awesome.  
Think once it reaches 50 I'll do some one-shots of the reviewer's choice. **

**Please, let me know if you think I am moving too fast or if characters are OOC.  
Also, I realize that I may have altered the timeline a little bit, but I'm sticking as close to it as possible.**


	5. Recovery

_**Bless me with a second chance**_

_**Never thought I'd see your face again**_

_**Learning life through trial and error**_

_**Trying to make it right**_

**Justin Bieber - Recovery**

When Maxi woke up the next morning, the first thing she realized was that she was alone in bed. After talking late into the night about Scott and Stiles, the two girls had passed out beside each other. Pulling the pillow off her face, she looked to her clock, and saw that it was nearing noon. She flung her arm out of bed onto her night stand and grabbed her phone.  
3 text and 1 missed call. She checked the call first, saw that it was Lydia. Most likely wanting to know why she had left the party early. The text.  
1 from Allison, saying that her dad had come and got her around 10 but she would get a hold of her later.  
1 from Danny, just wanting to see how she was feeling.  
1 from Renny. He said he had left for work, but left Tylenol and Gatorade on her night stand, and when she looked she did see it. Then he went on to say that he hadn't had time to get her a breakfast sandwich. She pouted a bit, that was her favorite morning after ritual. She sat up, throwing her phone on the bed. She leaned over, grabbing the Strawberry-Kiwi Gatorade off the nightstand, along with two Tylenol. She took the pills, and drank as much of the Gatorade as she could. She contemplated laying back down for a little while, then remembered that she had a bedroom to clean, an undecided dessert to prepare, and to clean herself up.

She threw the blankets back, making her way to her bathroom. She turned the tap on, wetting a washcloth and washing her face. It helped her wake up a little bit, and for that she was grateful. She then made her way into her closet, grabbing a pair of sweats that she threw on over the short set she had worn to bed, along with a hoodie. She grabbed a pair of socks out of her drawer and made her way downstairs.

Once she reached the kitchen, she saw that there was a note on the counter. Gabi and Dad had gone to get new soccer cleats for her, and then were going to get lunch. She crumpled the note up, throwing it in the trash. She then opened the fridge, looking for something to eat. Inside she found a breakfast sandwich with a note on it. _Gotcha! _She laughed, grabbing the sandwich out and putting it into the microwave. Once it was done heating up, she poured herself a glass of milk and sat at the counter. She flipped through the paper, seeing that they were still looking for the rest of the body and they had yet to identify her. She felt a chill run down her spine. She couldn't imagine who would do something to someone.

Once she was done eating, she cleaned up her mess and made her way back upstairs. She went straight to Renny's room. She figured she could thank him for bringing food back for her before work, by doing any tidying that needed to be done. She cleaned up the room, throwing his laundry into the hamper and putting books back on the shelf where they belonged.

About an hour later, she was done with his room and making her way back to hers. She turned her iPod on and got to work. She cleaned up the floor, organized her closet from the mess the school week had caused. She dusted her furniture, stripped her bed and started a load of laundry, and she made sure her book shelf was nice and neat. She then took the time to clean up her bathroom, knowing that while it wasn't a mess now, it was better to be proactive and take care of it before it was.

She was in the middle of wiping her counter down, when she heard her bedroom door open. She stepped out, seeing her dad standing there. She placed the rag back in the bathroom and made her way out to talk to him.

"Put your bedding in the dryer for you. Should be done soon."

"Thank you Daddy. Did you and Gabi have fun?"

"Of course. Got her some new cleats, girls growing like a weed."

She laughed, knowing the girl was going to be tall like their dad and Renny, not shorter like their mom and her.

"What time did you wake up? I figured Allison leaving would have woke you, but she said you didn't stir."

"I've been up since a little before noon."

"Did you drink last night? I saw Renny brought home a sandwich for you."

"Yeah, just a little bit. Renny made my drinks, making sure it wasn't too much."

"Well good. As long as you're responsible about it, I won't give you any lectures."

"Oh, Daddy, did Renny tell you?"

"Did Renny tell me what? You'll have to be a bit more specific," he said, smiling at her.

"That Derek is back! He was at the party last night, with some friends I think. He drove Allison and I home. Isn't that great?"

"Derek Hale is back? Never thought I'd see the day. He and Laura were both very adamant about not returning, no matter what your mom and I said. Wonder what made them change their minds. Is Laura here too then?"

"I don't know. Derek never answered me last night. He did ask about Peter. Just in passing. I feel bad that I haven't been to see him in a while. Would you mind driving me over to the hospital tomorrow to see him, please?"

"Of course baby girl. Just let me know when," he said, pausing to look around her room. "So, are you excited for this dinner?"

"Daddy, don't. We're just friends. Besides, we barely know each other. We've just recently started talking again."

"Everyone has to start somewhere," he said, holding his hands up in surrender. He'd just have to ask the boy some questions later. "Well, I'll let you get back to cleaning up. Looks like you're about done. Did you decide on a dessert yet?"

"Yep! Decided to go simple, but delicious. Going to make a chocolate mousse, homemade whipped cream, and crush up some cookies. I'll layer it all in some dessert dishes, garnish with cocoa. What about you, what did you decide on?"

"Pan-Roasted chicken with lemon-garlic green beans. You said the kids been living off of fast food for a while, so I figured we'd go home-style and not overwhelm him. I'll save my impressive stuff for when you decide if he's still just a friend or more," he said, winking as he walked out of her room.

She rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything. She just made her way back into the bathroom, finishing up her cleaning.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

By the time Maxi got done with all her cleaning, it was nearing 3:00. She needed to get downstairs and get her dessert prepared so it had time to set. She went down and made everything that she could, which was really only the mousse, since she would make the whipped topping right before serving it. She sat down with Gabi in the living room, watching some mindless TV with her while she told her about her first week back. Around 5:00 she decided she should go get cleaned up, since Stiles could be there at any time. Gabi was already dressed, a red cap sleeve dress over blue Aztec leggings with a pair of brown boots. She told Gabi she would be back in a little bit and to let her know if Stiles showed up before she was back downstairs.

Once she got up stairs, she cleaned her nail polish off and picked out what she was going to wear. She grabbed a white short sleeved dress, which would fall a couple of inched above her knee and a pink cardigan that was a little bit shorter than the dress. She looked through her tights and leggings, finding a nude pair with a black line down the back with a bow about mid-calf. She then made her way to the bathroom, pulling her hair out of the messy bun from last night and brushing it out.

She took her shower, taking her time and relaxing. Once she was out, she wrapped up in a fluffy towel and towel dried her hair. She then blow dried it and put her curlers in. While her hair was setting, she put her dress and cardigan on, then did her makeup. She kept it simple, just a lighter smoky eye and a shimmering gloss on her lips. Looking at the clock, she was it was about 6:00. She had time to do her nails, since she'd just cleaned them off. She took her curlers out, letting her curly hair fall down her back. She grabbed a pair of patent leather pink pumps that matched her cardi. She then looked through her nail polish, pulling out a pale pink and a silver glitter. She had just finished her first hand when she heard the doorbell.

"Maxi, get the door please? Gabi is out back and I am knuckle deep in a chicken."

She laughed and made her way down the stairs. As she reached the last step, she heard the doorbell ring again.

"Coming!"

She reached the door, swinging it open, only to be greeted by flowers.

Stiles was standing there, dressed in what looked to be a pair of dark dress pants and a light blue button up. He had rolled the sleeves up to just below his elbows and he looked extremely handsome.

"Are those for me?"

He started the stumble over his words, finally hiding behind the flowers.

"I know you said I didn't need to bring anything, but I felt like I should. I saw these, and they reminded me of you. Pretty and bright," he said, removing the flowers from his face.

She blushed, stepping back and letting him into the house. She shut the door behind him, "That's very sweet of you. No one's ever brought me flowers before. You really didn't have too."

She gestured for him to follow her to the kitchen. When they walked in, Hank was laying the chicken and green beans in a dish. He looked up, offering them a smile. "Kids, let me just wash my hands."

"Dad, this is Stiles. Stiles, this is my Dad, Hank. Dad, Stiles brought me some flowers. Can you help him find a vase for them while I go finish up what I was doing really quickly, please?"

Before either could say anything, she was quickly walking out of the room.

"Stiles. How are you son?"

"Good sir."

"Please, just Hank. I've told you that many times."

"Right, you have. Sorry sir, Hank, It's been a while."

"It has been. How have you been doing?"

Before Stiles could answer, Gabi walked in the back door, soccer ball under her arm. She stopped short, seeing a very cute boy standing in the kitchen.

"H-Hey," Stiles said, giving her a small wave.

"Hi! You look," she started to say, but was cut off by her father.

"Gabi, can you give Stiles a small tour of the house while I find a vase for these flowers?"

She recognized the tone as his no-nonsense one. "Of course, come on."

She walked with him following into the living room. "This, as I am sure you can figure out, is our living room."

Stiles, laughing at her joke, looked around. He walked over to the piano, seeing that it was covered in assorted picture frames and figurines. As he got closer, he could see that they were foxes, and in the middle of the bunch was a small single one.

_**Flashback – 2 years ago (Christmas Time)**_

_Stiles was on the chaise lounge, not quite laying down, but relaxed. He was fidgeting with a small box in his lap, waiting for Mrs. Taylor to return. When he had walked in the door, she had offered him a homemade Christmas cookie. When he took one and started to eat it, she quickly apologized, stating that cookies with no milk was just wrong and had hurried into the house. So here he sat, waiting for her to return. It was the last session they would have before the holidays, since she would be away. Stiles and his dad had plans, but none that would take them out of town. The station was holding a dinner, and they would be eating there. The thought of his dad and him trying to cook the meal brought a small laugh out of his throat. They hadn't had a holiday with a home cooked meal since his mom had passed. Before he could delve to far into those memories, the door opened and in walked Mrs. Taylor. She came over to him, handing him a small glass of milk. _

"_This should make the cookies much better." _

"_They're already delicious. Maxi really outdid herself this year." _

"_Homemade frosting. She refused to use any store bought. She was in the kitchen for hours yesterday. Even then, she said she still had several things to make. Which really confused me, since we are going away for the holiday, and that stuff really doesn't travel."_

_She took the seat across from him, flipping her notebook to a new page. _

"_So, how are the holidays treating you? I know this can be a hard time for you." _

_He went on to explain how he was just trying not to dwell on it. He had gotten through Thanksgiving, spending the day with the McCall family. Melissa had offered to cook for the four of them. It had been nice, but it made him miss his mom even more. She then told him about the dinner at the station, and how he and his dad would exchange gifts Christmas morning. _

"_Have you got your shopping done already then?"_

"_Pretty much. Got my dad a tie because I really had no clue what else to get him. Scott I got a video game I know he's been wanting." _

"_Which I'm sure will in turn be just as much for you as for him," she said, giving him a small smile. _

_He laughed, "Yeah, you're probably right. Who else is he going to play it with?"_

"_How are things with you and your dad, Stiles?" _

_He looked down to his hands, no longer playing with the box. _

"_They're OK, as good as can be expected. He works a lot. We don't really see each other very often. Seems like, sometimes, that he is avoiding the house." _

"_And how does that make you feel? Thinking that he doesn't want to be in the house?"_

"_I understand. It can't be easy. Sometimes I wonder...," he cuts himself off, not really sure if he should voice his deepest fears. _

"_Wonder what sweetie?" _

"_I wonder if he wishes it had been me instead of her."_

"_Oh Stiles..."_

"_No, no, I know that he loves me and it wasn't my fault she got sick and what happened happened. I just wonder if, like, he was given the chance, would he switch our places? Would he have rather lost a 9 year old boy, still had his wife, and started over?" _

"_Stiles, what makes you think that?" _

"_Sometimes, I see him staring at a photo, and you can see the longing in his eyes. He misses her so much, that I wonder if he would look at a picture of me the same way," and by the time he finishes his sentence, he is crying. _

_Mrs. Taylor grabs a box of tissues and takes the seat beside him. She hands him one, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. He leans into her, missing the feel of a mothers touch. They sit there, quiet for a few minutes while Stiles lets it all out. _

_When he's finished, Mrs. Taylor takes her seat again. _

"_Stiles, you know you're father loves you, right," she says, as he shakes his head, "And you know that he would never wish you gone? He wouldn't trade you for the world. You are his son and his pride and joy." _

"_I know. I don't know where that came from."_

"_Is it something you've been holding in for a while?"_

"_Maybe." _

"_Do you feel better, now that you've got it off your chest?" _

_He shook his head, fiddling with the box again. _

"_What's in the box, Stiles?"_

"_Oh, well, um, Scott and I, we were doing our shopping a few weeks ago, with his mom. I had just got my tie, when she dragged us into this like, hallmark store or something. We wandered off, and I came across all these little figurines or whatever they call them. This one caught my eye, and I thought you would like it," he said, holding it out to her. _

"_For me? Stiles, you shouldn't have." _

"_I wanted too. I just hope you like it and don't already have it." _

"_Do I open it now or wait til Christmas?"_

"_You can open it now, it's nothing big." _

_She sat her notepad down, slowly unwrapping the box. When she got the paper off and the box opened, she pulled out a mound of paper. She slowly peeled it away, to reveal a small white and orange fox. She gasped, looking to Stiles._

"_Stiles, this is beautiful. Thank you very much." _

_He shook his head, not needing the praise. _

"_You've done a lot for me, and I just wanted to show you that I appreciate it." _

_She placed the fox back in the box and set it down. _

"_I think our session is just about over, how about I walk you out?"_

_He stood up, going to walk around her, but before he could, she pulled him in for a hug. _

"_Thank you very much Stiles. You're mother would be very proud of the young man you are growing into, I know I am." _

_After that, she walked him to the front of the house, watching as he got into his dads car. She waved until they turned the corner. _

_**End Flashback**_

"Stiles?"

He was startled out of the memory, turning to see Maxi had entered the room.

"Do you like foxes? They're my mothers. She collected them. There's even more in her office out back."

"Oh, yeah, they're pretty neat. I was just looking at them," he said, turning back to look at them again.

She walked up beside him, grabbing the little one in the middle. "This was her favorite she'd said. She had so many that were flashy and overdone, but this one, was perfect. Just a little fox, needing to be loved."

Hearing how Mrs. Taylor had described his present to her nearly brought a tear to his eye. He wiped his face quickly, not wanting Maxi to see.

"Was Gabi giving you a tour," she asked, looking to her sister. She was seated on the arm of the chair, frantically texting. At the sound of her name, she looked up, a soft blush on her cheeks.

"Sorry, I had to tell Olivia something really quick. Do you want to continue the tour?"

"I got it from here Gabs. Why don't you go see if Dad needs any help," she said, linking arms with Stiles and leading him out of the living room.

Gabi threw a glare after them, but did as she was told.

Maxi and Stiles, continuing their way through the house, made small talk as she showed him the different rooms. They made their way upstairs, her just pointing out rooms now. Once they reached her room, she opened the door and led him in.

"And this, is my room!"

"Man, you really weren't kidding. This place is spotless!"

She laughed, liking that he remembered little things that she said. "Yeah, I spent a few hours in here this morning after I got up. But that was AFTER I cleaned up Renny's room for him."

Stiles gave her a look, obviously curious as to why she had cleaned her brother's room.

"He always takes care of me the morning after a party. He makes sure I have Gatorade, medicine if I need it, and a nice greasy breakfast sandwich. He had to work this morning, but he still managed to make sure there was one here for me."

"He sounds like a pretty awesome big brother."

"The best."

Stiles continued to look around her room, trying not to pay too much attention to the bed or the girl that was currently seated on it.

"So, since you obviously didn't clean your room today, what did you do all morning?"

He faltered a bit. How had he spent his morning? Picking his werewolf best friend up on the side of the road, and then trying to convince him that things would be OK.

"Oh you know, put my time to actual good use. Slept in till noon and then killed zombies. What else is a teenage boy supposed to do on a Saturday morning?"

She laughed, watching as he fumbled with her balcony doors. Finally, he got them figured out and the doors were opened.

"You're room is pretty amazing.

"Thanks. My mom and I designed it together."

"A little pink for my taste, but still nice."

"A little pink? There's only a few things that are pink!"

"Well yeah, but I'm a guy and any pink is too much for us," he said.

She laughed, throwing one of her pink throw pillows at him. He wasn't expecting it and it hit him in the back of the head.

"Hey! Don't you use your pink weapons against me," he said, throwing it back at her. She wasn't quick enough and it hit her in the face.

He laughed, hard. She was laughing as well, but they were interrupted by Hank yelling up the stairs. "Hey, come on down you guys. Dinner should be ready soon."

They got up, making their way down the stairs. If Stiles watched the sway of her hips as she walked away, well, who could blame him?

When they walked into the kitchen, Hank immediately looked from Maxi to Stiles, and back to Maxi.

"You know the rules. Go change."

"But Daddy, we have company."

"Maxi, no heels in the house. You know the rules. Unless you are getting ready to go somewhere, which I am fairly certain you are not, you will go change. I am sure that outfit will look just as nice, with a pair of flats. Go."

She stomped her foot, the heel making a very loud noise. Hank continued to look at her, his face not changing. "Go."

"Fine," she grumbled, making her way back up to her room.

"Have a seat Stiles."

He took a seat in the gestured too stool at the bar, watching as Mr. Taylor cleaned up the mess he had made preparing a salad.

"Sorry about that. She has this insecurity, about being shorter then everybody. She says it makes her feel like she's being looked down on. We've tried to make her feel that home is safe, that no one is looking down on her here. So, we don't allow her to wear her heels when she's home."

Stiles faltered, not really sure why he was being told this.

"You're wondering why I just told you that, right."

Stiles shook his head, extremely curious if he would tell him why he had disclosed such personal information.

"It might not seem like it, but it means a lot for her to bring people here. And if she's willing to do that, she must trust you on some level. I don't want her using the things she uses as a crutch at school, here. So I just want you to know, why I did what I did. Do you understand?"

He was trying too. He understand having something about yourself that you didn't like. He understood feeling like that thing held you back. What he couldn't understand is why Maxi was choosing him to be this person. Why was she letting him in, when there were so many other guys, in general, that were better than him? What had he done to deserve that? He looked up to Mr. Taylor, shaking his head, that yes he understood. Hank gave him a nod back, then turned to the kitchen door.

"Much better sweetheart, thank you."

Standing in the door, in a pair of flats with a rhinestone bow on the toe, was Maxi. It was amazing what a difference the shoes had made to her personality. It seemed like she had shrunk in on herself. She was fidgeting with her hands, and staring at the ground. She came and sat beside Stiles, sending him a small shy smile.

"So, Gabi is setting the table, Renny should be home in about ten minutes, and then we can eat. Are you hungry Stiles?"

"Yes sir, I mean Yes. Yes, I am. It smells amazing."

"Pan roasted chicken with lemon-garlic green beans. Had it before?"

"Actually I have. It's been a long time, but my mom made something similar when I was younger."

At the mention of his mom, Maxi placed her hand on his arm, giving him the only comfort she could offer him. He sent her a small smile, appreciating the gesture. When the back door flung up, they both jumped, looking to see that Renny had just arrived. He was dirty and sweaty.

"Give me ten minutes to shower, I was working on a car at the shop and lost track of time. Leaked all over me, the damn thing."

"Renny."

"Sorry, the dang thing. Be right back," he countered, rushing up the stairs.

As he walked out, Gabi walked in.

"Table is all set. It smells really good in here."

"Thanks Hun, would you three be willing to start taking food to the table?"

The all got up, Stiles and Maxi standing beside each other waiting to be given something to take. It was then that Stiles realized that in flats, Maxi now only reached his shoulders. She took the bread from Hank and made her way into the dining room. Hank handed him the platter of green beans, giving him a knowing look. Stiles quickly followed the girls to the dining room, placing the platter towards the center and waiting to be told where to sit.

"Stiles, you can sit here, beside me," Gabi said, pulling out a chair for him. He took his seat, seeing that Maxi was still standing.

"What would you like to drink?"

"Water, water is fine."

She asked Gabi and then made her way back into the kitchen.

"I know you."

He whipped his head to look at the younger girl beside him.

"Sorry?"

"I said, I know you. You used to come here, and see my mom. Are you crazy?"

Stiles eyes widened at the line of questioning.

"Um, no, no I wasn't then, nor am I now, crazy. What do you mean you saw me?"

"I saw you when you would go into her office sometimes. She didn't talk about her patients, but after you would leave, she'd always have a smile on her face."

This caused Stiles to smile. "You always left with a smile on your face too, just like that."

"Like what," Maxi asked, placing a glass of water and a glass of milk on the table in front of them.

Stiles looked at Gabi, hoping his look of sheer terror was conveyed on his face. He didn't want Maxi to know, not like this, not now.

"Just the way he looks at you. It's like all the other guys do," she said, taking a sip of her milk.

Maxi raised an eyebrow at him, but he just rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulder.

"What can I say? We all know you're beautiful, can't help but look."

She blushed a little, and took her seat. It wasn't long before Hank and Renny joined them. Dinner was served and conversation was had. Immediately Stiles was gushing about how good the food was, and how nice it was to have something home cooked.

"You eat out a lot," Hank asked him.

"Well with Dad and I's schedule, it doesn't really allow for much cooking time, yet alone sit down and eat time. We have a couple of meals together a week, even if it's just sitting in the squad car. It's better than nothing, I suppose."

At that comment, Maxi gave him a sad smile.

"Well," Hank began, "You are more than welcome to dinner any time. I try to cook most nights, as long as my schedule allows it."

"Thank you sir, I really appreciate that. If it's all as good as this, I might have to take you up on that."

"I'm sure he'd only be here for the food," Renny said under his breath. "Ow," he said, feeling his sister stomp on his toes. When he looked at her, she was sending him a very angry glare. "What? I'm just saying!"

Hank and Gabi laughed, eying Stiles and Maxi. They continued to eat, making idle small talk until dinner was over. Once everyone was done eating, Maxi got up, and started to clear the table.

"Here, let me help," Stiles said, getting up and helping.

"I'll help too!" Gabi said, jumping out of her chair.

With all three of them cleaning up, the table was cleared and the dishwasher loaded in 10 minutes.

"I don't know about you guys, but I am not ready for dessert. How about Renny and I go out and start the fire pit? Relax out there until were ready to enjoy some chocolate?" Hank asked as he entered the kitchen, grabbing a beer out of the fridge.

"I'd say that sounds great. Stiles, have we scared you off yet, or are you willing to hang out for a little longer," Maxi asked, looking hopefully at Stiles.

"Yeah, no, I'd love to stay and hang out. Let me just call my dad and let him know."

Renny and Hank headed outside, while Gabi went upstairs to grab a hoodie. Maxi was standing there, leaning against the counter while Stiles called his Dad.

"Hey Dad, it's your son. I just wanted to let you know that I am still at the Taylor's. I think I'll be here for a while longer, few hours at least. Don't look for me anytime soon. Love you."

He hung up the phone, turning to Maxi. "Done. So, what now?"

She laughed, thinking it was adorable how excited he was.

"Well, I am going to go and change into something more, bonfire approved. You can stay here, join the guys, or you can come upstairs with me."

His jaw dropped. Did she just invite him upstairs while she changed?

"Stiles? You do realize I have a walk-in closet, right? We wouldn't exactly be in the same room but I can see I've made you uncomfortable. Just hang here, and I'll be right back, OK?"

He shook his head, at a loss for words. What had he just passed up? Was she going to think he was weird, or gay? Or worse, not interested? He watched as she left the room, taking a seat at the counter. He'd only been alone for a minute when his phone rang. Scott.

"Yo, what's up?"

"How's dinner going?"

"Man, she just like, invited me to her room while she changed. I panicked. I thought she meant like, in front of me! I panicked and froze up. So now, I'm standing in her kitchen, waiting for her to come back. We're all going out back to sit by the fire pit."

"Well, did you ask her about Derek? What does she know?"

"Scott, calm down. I haven't had a chance. I can't just blurt it out. I have to be smooth, work into it. I'll get a hold of you when I leave."

"Alright, sounds good. How is it, being there?"

"It's, weird. I really don't know what to think. Her dad's being super cool about it, but turns out, her little sister remembers me. She asked if I was crazy."

"You told her yes, right?"

He rolled his eyes, "Man, pups got jokes."

"Shh… someone might here you."

'Yes Scott cause the minute I hear pup, I assume that you're"

"Stiles!"

"Right, sorry. I'll talk to you later bro," Stiles said, hanging up the phone.

"Who was that?"

"Ah! What the hell," Stiles yelled, turning to see Gabi standing behind him.

"Who were you talking too? What do you have to be smooth to find out about?"

"Man, you have been standing there a while, huh?"

"Since my sister left. I grabbed a jacket out of the closet, thought you might want it," she said, holding it out to him.

"Aw, thank you. That's so sweet."

She blushed, looking down to the ground and letting her hair fall in front of her face a bit.

"How old are you?"

She looked up, he was asking about her. He wanted to know more about her. "I'm 12, but I'll be 13 in a few months."

"Cool! I remember being 12. Only thing that's really changed since then is I can drive now."

"Hopefully more then that's changed since then Stilinski," Renny said walking through the back door with his dad.

"Renny, leave the kid alone. Gabi, where's your sister?"

"She's right here," Maxi said, walking into the kitchen.

She had changed into a pair of jeans, a black top, and a cardigan that had bears on it. When Stiles saw it, he laughed a little bit.

"Are you laughing at my sweater?"

"Honestly? Yes, yes I am. It has bears on it! I've never seen you in something like that before."

"You pay that close of attention to my wardrobe Stilinski," she said, cocking an eyebrow at him.

"Of course! Gotta know what's in and what's out."

She threw her head back, laughing loudly. "You and your wardrobe problems, I swear."

"Are we ready to head outside?" Gabi asked, making her way to the back door.

Renny and Hank went and grabbed a sweatshirt and a jacket, while Stiles pulled on the Northface jacket Gabi had given him. The three of them made their way outside. They reached the fire pit, and Gabi and Maxi sat down on opposite sides.

Gabi was just getting ready to see if Stiles wanted to sit by her, when Maxi spoke up. "Stiles, do you want to share the bench with me?"

He shook his head, going to sit beside her. The bench wasn't small, but it was close enough that their knees were touching. "Are you warm enough," she asked, "I can bring out a blanket if you're not."

"No, I'm fine. You?"

"I'm good, thank you."

Looking around, he saw the pool that Scott must have ended up in yesterday morning. He then saw the patio with the grill and furniture, and the huge garage, with attached offices. He remembered the first time that he had come here for his appointments, after he had gone on to Junior High and she had moved up to High School principal.

_**Flashback – 3 years ago beginning of 7**__**th**__** grade**_

_His Dad pulled up in front of the house, turning to look at him. _

"_You know what to do right? And I'll meet you here after your session." _

"_Yeah, I know. I got it. I'll see you in an hour." _

_Stiles got out of the car, standing on the curb. Before he could change his mind and get back into the car, his dad had driven off. He's not sure how long he stood there. Finally, he started to walk around the house, going slow and just hoping he didn't run into anyone. He didn't need Maxine Taylor or her brother finding out he was coming to their house for therapy. His reputation was bad enough as it was. _

_He reached the garage and made his way to the office door. He knocked and was immediately told to come in. When he opened the door, Mrs. Taylor was making her way to the door. _

"_Stiles! Did you have any trouble finding the place? I feel like I should have met you out front or something. Please, have a seat," she said, directing him to a chaise lounge behind the door._

"_No, we found it fine. I just got a little nervous. I was pretty worried about running into your kids." _

"_Oh, you won't have to worry about that. I made sure and set our schedule up for when they have things going on. Maxi is at gymnastics and Renny is at lacrosse. I wouldn't put you through that." _

"_Thanks, I really appreciate that." _

"_Do you think it would cause a problem, if people did know you were seeing me?" _

"_I definitely wouldn't be helping myself if it got out, if you know what I mean?" _

_She studied him for a minute. "Does anyone know that you see me? Other than your dad?"_

"_Scott does, my best friend. I had to explain where I was going and we don't lie to each other." _

"_That's good! A friendship is nothing if there isn't trust. Tell me about Scott. McCall, I take it?" _

_So for the next hour, he sat there and talked about his best friend and the things that they did together. Before he knew it, his time was up and his dad was there._

_**End Flashback**_

"Isn't the sky beautiful?"

"What? Sorry, zoned out looking at the fire," Stiles covered. He looked to Gabi, who was looking at him with a knowing look on her face. She looked from him to the garage where the office was, then back again.

While he had been zoned out, Renny and Hank had joined them. They were talking about the car Renny had been working on, and they brought Stiles into the conversation. They'd been talking for a little while, when Hank got Renny's attention.

"So, I hear Derek is back. Have you spoke with him?"

"Maxi told you? Yeah, I saw him last night, but didn't really talk to him. He seemed preoccupied. I'm just hoping Laura is back with him."

"Keep dreaming," Stiles heard Maxi say under her breath. Stiles laughed, listening to Renny tell his dad about seeing Derek.

"How do you guys know the Hales," he blurted out.

"Ben Hale and my father were business partners before the fire, but they all grew up together. My dad, my mom, Talia and Ben, Derek's parents, and his Uncle Peter. All went to high school here," Maxi explained.

"That's cool. Were they still close, after growing up and everything?"

"Yeah, Dad and Ben were best friends. We had family dinner together at least once a month. Laura, that's the oldest girl, she was like the big sister I never had. She was always willing to spend time with Cora and I. Cora was a little bit older then me. It was Laura, Derek, and Cora. Laura, Derek, and Peter, their Uncle, were the only ones to make it out of the fire. Peter got really badly burned because he was there when it happened. He tried to save them, but in the end he just had to get out. He had to save himself or die with them."

"Wow, so where is he now?"

"He is still here. He's in the hospital long term care facility. He's basically been unresponsive since it happened. I sometimes wonder, if Derek and Laura had stayed, been there for him, if maybe he wouldn't have recovered."

"Wow. So why do you think Derek is back after all this time? You're dad said they seemed pretty set against returning."

"Honestly, I have no clue. The last I heard from Laura, which was almost 6 months ago now, she didn't mention either of them having any plans to come back. They'd been in New York for the last few years, said they really seemed to like it."

"Do you think she came back too?"

"Why are you asking so many questions," Renny interjected. Maxi shot him a glare.

"Scott and I ran into him in the woods the other day. Remember when I told you we had to go back and get his inhaler," he directed towards Maxi. She shook her head, remembering what he was talking about. "He seemed pretty upset that we were there, said we were on private property. I guess I never thought that the Hales still owned the land."

"Do you think he's staying in that house Renny? It's gotta be condemned or something, doesn't it?"

Before Renny could answer, Hank spoke up. "I wouldn't put it past Derek, to stay there. Maxi, why don't you head in and make the dessert. I'm going to be ready for bed soon."

"Sure Daddy. Do you guys want to eat out here, or come inside?"

"Go ahead and bring them outside. There should be some plastic cups to serve it in."

Maxi made her way inside, leaving the rest around the fire.

"So Stiles, how is lacrosse going?"

Before Stiles could say anything, Renny started laughing. Stiles threw him a look, not appreciating being mocked.

"Stiles isn't big on being on the field. He's more of a bench warmer. His friend Scott used to be the same, but suddenly this year, he's all sorts of talented."

"Yeah, he worked really hard in the off season. Me, I'm just happy to say I'm part of the team."

Under his breath, Renny muttered, "That's all you can say."

"Renny, what is your problem?"

"Sorry dad. I guess I'm just a little upset with a sophomore coming and taking spots from seniors that aren't going to have another chance to play next year."

"Hey, it's not like I'm taking those spots. As you said, I'm barely able to say I'm part of the team," Stiles said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"OK boys, that's enough. Stiles, why don't you go in and see if Maxi needs any help?"

"Sure thing," he said, getting up and making his way inside.

When he walked into the house, he saw Maxi on the other side of the kitchen, whipping something quickly. He took a seat on the stool, content to just watch her for now. She held the bowl, whisking quickly. As she did this, he could hear her humming to herself. He smiled, thinking she had to be one of the cutest things he'd ever seen.

She finished whipping, whatever she was whipping, and then opened a cabinet. She looked for a moment, before she gave a loud Ah-ha! He watched as she stood on her tippie toes, still unable to reach what appeared to be some dessert containers. He got up, making his way over to her. He stood behind her, almost close enough to touch.

"Let me get that," he said, reaching over her. He felt her soft intake of breath, but she didn't move. As he leaned up to grab the cups, it brought their bodies together, pressing her into the counter. To balance himself, he placed a hand on her hip, and grabbed the cups. "Here you go."

He stepped back, giving her room.

"Th-Thank you, Stiles. I hate being so short. I wish I was a little bit taller."

"Did you just do that on purpose?"

"Do what," she asked, slowly layering the desserts in the cups.

"Just quote Skee-Lo's song, "I Wish".

"Umm, no I don't think I've heard it before."

"Oh man! I am so making that your ring-tone!"

Stiles pulled his phone out, typing quickly. She gave him a look over her shoulder, but continued what she was doing. Suddenly she could hear a song playing.

"Is that it?"

"Yeah, I just have to crop it to the part that I want."

He let the song play, bobbing his head to the song. She turned around, leaning against the counter, just watching him.

"I really don't get how this guy rapping made you think of me."

"Just give me a second, it'll get to the part I want."

The song ended and he started clicking on his phone again. Then he told her to call him. She grabbed her phone off the counter, finding his name, and pressing send. Suddenly, she could understand why this song was going to be her ring-tone._**.**___

**These girls just keep passing' me by****  
****She looks fly, she looks fly****  
****Makes me say my, my, my******

**I wish I was a little bit taller...****  
****I wish I was a baller...**

Maxi started laughing, hitting the end button.

"See? The song is perfect for you."

"Well, I don't know about being a baller, but I like the rest. Now, I'll have to find a ring-tone for you!"

They collected the dessert, and carried it outside to everyone.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

Once the dessert was done, Hank stood up, collecting the dishes.

"Well kids, it's been a fun night, but I am ready to retire. Stiles, thanks for coming to dinner. I really appreciate you making sure Maxi got home safe the other night," he said, walking over to shake his hand.

"No problem. I would have felt horrible if I had just let her go on her way and anything happened to her."

Hank said good night, and made his way inside. The four sat there, looking at the fire, all in their own little world. After a short time, Renny stood up, "Well, I think I'm going to head out. Go see what the boys are doing. You guys need anything before I leave?"

Looking from Maxi to Gabi, Renny saw that Gabi was looking pretty tired. "Gabi, why don't I take you inside before I go?"

She jolted up, not wanting to go. "I'm fine! I'll go in when they do."

Renny rolled his eyes, walking towards his sister, "Come on, let's leave them alone."

She started to put up a fight, but quickly stopped not wanting to look like a baby throwing a tantrum. "Fine," she said, getting up. "Stiles, it was nice meeting you. Hope to see you around soon."

Before he could say anything back, Gabi pushed pass Renny, leave the three alone.

"Well, I'll be on my way then. Hands to yourselves and all that, especially you Stilinski. See you in the morning."

"Night Ren! Have fun."

They both watched as he left the yard, listening as his truck roared to life, and drove off down the street.

They sat there, both unsure of what to do next. Finally Maxi broke the silence.

"So... Did things just get awkward?"

He turned to look at her, watching as she tucked some hair behind her ear.

"Not awkward, just a readjusting period."

He shivered, rubbing his arms a bit.

"Are you cold?"

"I want to say no, and be all tough, but yeah. It's getting chilly."

She readjusted herself, pulling her legs up beside her and scooting closer to him, she then wrapped her arm around his and leaned into him. "Is that better," she asked.

He looked at her for a moment, before shaking his head, and leaning into her as well. Friends did these kinds of things, right? He needed to remind himself not to read into anything.

"So, did you have fun tonight? Or did my family totally scare you off?"

He laughed, shaking his head. "Your family is pretty amazing. Most dads would have been trying to scare me off, or embarrass you. But he was cool the whole night! Not one embarrassing story. I'm pretty disappointed with the way this night went, to be honest."

She laughed, burying her face in his arm. "Oh imagine the horrible stories he could have told. Maybe, just maybe, you'll get lucky next time."

He stopped, looking at her. "You want to do this again?"

"Well, yeah. I had a good time, my dad invited you back again, why wouldn't you come back?"

"I don't know, it's not like we run in the same circles."

"Well, not anymore, but we used too."

"That was a long time ago. Things have changed."

"I get that, but I don't see why we can't be friends like that again."

"Maybe because your friends hate me and my friends?"

"First of all, my friends aren't me. And they can't determine who I can and can't be friends with."

"What about Lydia, or Jackson?"

"Jackson isn't my friend. And as far as Lydia goes, she doesn't hate you. She just doesn't know you exist. There's a difference. She is very blind to anything outside of our little group. But I'm sure, that if she got to know you, she'd like you. Just like I do."

"Why do you suddenly want to be friends with me again?"

"Maybe because I don't know why we quit being friends in the first place?"

"You chose not to be my friend, so what is so different now? Why does Lahey get you chasing him down, but all I got was you looking the other way?"

"What are you talking about? I never walked away from you Stiles. We came back from some break, and suddenly, you weren't sitting with me at lunch and you were completely ignoring me at recess. I wondered what I did for so long, but then realized you just didn't want to be my friend anymore."

"That is so not how it happened! I came back from break, and suddenly you were ignoring me. I waved at you in the hall, that morning the first day back, and you just looked the other way. I went and asked Jackson what was going on and he said that you didn't want to be friends anymore. Said you were too cool for me."

"And you believed him? Jackson Whittemore? You chose to believe something he told you, about me, rather then ask me?"

"I thought we were all friends, I saw no reason at that point not to believe him. But then he started talking crap on me, saying all these horrible things. That's when I realized that the groups had been decided and we weren't good enough for you guys."

"God, I hate that guy. OK, I'm going to tell you something. Not many people know about this, so, ah hell tell everyone I really don't care. That first day back, we were all standing outside, waiting to be let inside, when Jackson started talking about some of the other kids. Scott, you, a few others. When he got to you, he said something, i won't repeat it, and it got me so mad. I couldn't understand how he could say something like that, about our friend. I don't know what came over me, but I punched him. Right there in the entry way to the school. That morning, if you saw me, I was at the office, waiting to speak to the principal. I didn't see you that day, I was sent home."

"What did he say Maxi?"

"Stiles, it really doesn't' matter."

"Maxi," he said, placing a hand on my arm, "What did Jackson say about me?" She felt a tear starting to build in her eye. She really didn't want to tell him.

"Please, don't make me say it."

"Maxi."

"He said that you were such a loser that your mother had died just to get away from you. And the minute I heard it leave his mouth, I saw red. How dare he say something like that, about anyone, but especially about you, that had just lost their mother! Him especially, never having met his. I just was so angry, I couldn't help it. He's the only person I've ever hit."

"You, punched Jackson, for me?"

She laughed, "Yes. You were my friend and he was being an ass. He deserved it."

Stiles let out a breath, "I didn't even know that it was still bothering me."

"Have you been holding that in for a while? Why didn't you say something sooner?"

"Why didn't you?"

"I figured it was something that would either come up, or we'd moved past it. Obviously, we hadn't moved past it," she said, giving him a look.

"Yeah, sorry. I guess I was a little bitter about it. And sorry about the Isaac comment. I don't know what happened between you two and it's none of my business. I shouldn't of said that, it was a cheap shot."

She looked down at her hands, not sure what to say. "There are things, that have happened between Isaac and I, that have to stay between Isaac and I. All I can really say, is that I just want to be his friend. I just want to be there for him."

He thought it over for a minute. He had heard rumors about his home life, and he could only assume that Maxi had too. "Just his friend?"

She laughed, moving back towards him, and linking arms again. "Is this OK? Are we good now? Can I call you my friend," she asked, laying her head on his shoulder.

"You can call me your friend and this is fine," he said, laying his head on top of hers.

They sat there, content and watching the fire, until Stiles' phone rang. Pulling it out, he saw his Dad calling.

"Dad."

"Yeah, OK."

He hung the phone up, putting it back in his pocket.

"You're dad? Everything OK?"

"Yeah, everything is fine. He just wanted to check up on me, make sure I wasn't overstaying my welcome. Said I should probably head out."

"Well, you don't have to if you don't want too. It's only," she looked at her watch, "midnight on a Saturday. We could head inside, watch a movie or something."

He groaned, "I'd really like that, but I don't think it was really a suggestion on my dads part. Can I take a rain check?"

She stood up, brushing her pants off, "Of course. I'll walk you to the jeep."

They made their way out of the backyard and around to the front of the house. When they reached the jeep, Stiles unlocked it, but didn't get in.

"Stiles, I had a lot of fun tonight, and I'm really glad that we got to talk, hash it all out." Maxi moved in, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm glad we can be friends again, move past everything."

He hugged her back, "Yeah, me too. Thanks for having me over."

She stepped back, pulling out of the hug. "It was our pleasure, and hopefully we can do it again soon. And like my dad said, the dinner invitation is always open. We'd be happy to have you."

"I'll be back, don't worry. The food was delicious. Company wasn't to bad either." He got in his car, starting the jeep. Maxi made her way to the porch, wrapping her cardigan tighter around herself. Stiles rolled his window down, "Goodnight Maxi."

She waved, "Goodnight Stiles! Drive safe," and with that he drove away.

**Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX**

Maxi waved bye to her father, telling him she would give him a call when she was done with her visit. When she walked into the long term care facility, she said hello to the nurses on duty, knowing them all by name by now. She made her way down the hall, knowing these halls by heart.

When she reached Peters room, she leaned against the frame, watching as his nurse Jennifer fussed with him. She could remember, 6 years ago, the first time she had came to see him in the hospital.

_**Flashback 6 years ago**_

_Hearing the school bell ring, all the kids ran for the door. When Maxi got outside to the pick up spot, she found her moms car, running to get inside. She took the backseat beside Gabi in her car seat, buckling up and saying hello to her mom. _

"_Mom! Today I kicked a home run during recess! It was so awesome! Everyone was cheering for me, except for Jackson of course. Lydia wouldn't play, but she still clapped when I scored for our team. Isn't that awesome?" _

_She waited for her mom to answer, but she didn't. _

"_Mommy?"_

"_Yes sweetie, that's great." _

_Renny climbed in the front seat, but seeing the stoic look on his moms face, didn't say anything. Maxi could tell that something was going on, the atmosphere had suddenly gotten very tense. When they got home, everyone got out of the car making their way inside. When Maxi walked in, she heard noise in the kitchen. Her Dad was home. He was never home before 5:00. _

"_Dad," Maxi said, walking into the kitchen. _

"_Maxine, can you get your brother and meet your mom and I in the living room?" _

_She shook her head, making her way to her brothers room. She knocked, entering the room. "Hey, Dad wants us in the living room. Know why?" _

"_No, but something is definitely up. Mom looked like she'd been crying and she took Gabi straight up to her room. Told her to stay in there til she came and got her." _

_They made their way downstairs, taking a seat on the loveseat in the living room. _

_Their parents walked in, sitting on the couch. Hank immediately took Dee's hand, squeezing it tightly. _

"_Kids, we have something to tell you. Somethings happened, and it's not good," Hank said, not sure how to tell them the news. _

"_Today, while you guys were at school, there was a fire. At the Hale house." _

_Both kids gasped, not liking where this story was going._

"_Is everyone OK," Renny asked. _

_The parents looked at each other, not wanting to have to tell them the news. _

"_Some of them were home. Derek and Laura, they were at school. But the rest of the family, for one reason or another it really doesn't matter, they were there. I'm so sorry you guys, but Ben, Talia, and Cora, they're gone." _

_By the time Dee had finished her sentence, the kids were in tears, but Maxi realized something. "What about Peter?"_

"_He was there, but he made it out. He's in the hospital. They aren't sure if he's going to make it. I'm so sorry you guys." _

_Before they could say anything else, Maxi broke down. The people she had looked at as a second family, the people she had called Mom and Dad, one of her friends, they were gone. Peter, a man that she had always looked at as an Uncle, that had taught her to catch and how to throw a punch, was in the hospital and might not make it. _

_Her mom came over, taking the seat beside her, and wrapping her in her arms. _

_Renny asked Hank questions, wanting to know how this had happened, what would happen to Derek and Laura. Laura was 18, but where were they going to stay? _

_XXXX***XXXX _

_When Maxi woke up the next morning, she immediately went and woke up her parents. They hadn't allowed her to go see Peter last night, but they had promised to let her go today. Derek and Laura were sleeping in guest rooms, having nowhere else to go. Once they were all up and around, they made their way to the hospital. They were only allowed 2 back at a time. Derek and Laura went first, but were back quickly. Hank offered to take Maxi, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and leading her towards the room. When they reached the door, Maxi stopped. She didn't know if she really wanted to go in there. Once she saw him, it would be real. Ben, Talia, and Cora would be dead. Peter would be hanging on by a thread, and Derek and Laura would be orphans. Her dad noticed her hesitation, and stopped beside her._

"_Daddy, I don't want to go in. I don't want to see Peter hurt! I don't want them to be gone," she said, gripping onto her dads chest as she cried. Hank let her cry for a few minutes, letting her get it all out. He knew this couldn't be easy for her. She was only 9 years old and loosing a very big part of her life. He was a grown man and he was having problems coming to terms with the fact that they were gone. The man he had looked at like a brother for most of his life, was gone. _

_After a couple of minutes, maxi pulled away. "I'm ready to go in now." _

_He shook his head, placed a hand on her lower back, and followed her in. _

_Peter laid on the bed, bandages covering his damage. It looked like it had damaged his right side more then the left. His left hand seemed like it was OK, so Maxi grabbed it, holding as tightly as she could. _

"_Uncle Peter, I hope you get better. We all love you and are just hoping that you wake up," she started to cry. "Who else is going to play catch with me, when the boys tell me they don't want to play with little girl babies? And who's going to let me put my cauliflower in my napkin and not tell my parents? Who's going to carry me on their shoulders when I demand to go on the trails with you guys and get tired halfway through? You have to be OK, or I won't be OK." _

_She started to break down, leaning her head on the bed. "I need you to be OK Uncle Peter! You promised you'd never leave me!" _

_When she started to scream at the comatose man, Hank picked her up and carried her from the room. She buried her head on his neck and cried the whole way back to the waiting area. Hank sat her down beside Dee and her mother wrapped her arms around her, whispering words of comfort into her ear. Soon enough, she was lulled to sleep, exhausted from her emotional outburst. _

_**End flashback**_

Maxi pushed herself off the door, making herself know to Jennifer.

"How is he doing?"

Jennifer jumped a bit, placing her hand on her chest, "Maxine, it's been a while."

She could hear the reprimand in her voice. She didn't need the nurse to make her feel bad, she did that enough for the both of them. "I know, I'm sorry. I've been busy with school stuff and the holidays. I came as soon as I could. Has he had any other visitors?"

The nurse looked at Maxi like she was dumb. "Maxine, you know that you are the only person that visits him on a regular basis. Your dad comes when he can, but that's it."

Maxi shook her head, moving to sit in the chair beside the bed. She took Peters hand, watching as Jennifer continued to tidy up the room.

"Has he been out of bed today? Could he sit in the chair while I visit with him?"

The nurse exhaled deeply, obviously annoyed by the girl. She had never been very nice to her, but she'd never seen her be nice to anyone but the patient lying in the bed. "I suppose I can make that happen. Let me go get Nurse McCall and we'll get him situated."

She left the room, quickly coming back with her colleague. Maxi said hello to Mrs. McCall, having gotten to know her from all her time at the hospital over the last 6 years and watched as they got Peter up and into his chair. Once he was in it, Maxi wheeled him over to the corner of the room, where there was a couple of big windows. She opened the blinds, letting the sun hit his face.

"There, much better. Maybe next time it will be a bit warmer and we can go for a walk around the gardens. That sounds nice doesn't it?"

She watched as the nurses left the room, reminding her to call if they needed anything. She gave them a small smile, then made to shut the door behind them.

She took her place back beside him, holding his hand once again. She then went on to tell him what she had been doing at school the last few weeks since she'd been by last, telling him little stories about the family.

"So, the one year anniversary of mom passing is coming up, quick. It's really hard for me to grasp that she's already been gone a year. I've been doing so good, the last few months. No nightmares, no panic attacks in the car. But a couple of nights ago, I had that nightmare again. Flashes, sounds, never anything solid. I woke Renny up, with my screaming. I know he worries about me, and I'm afraid I'm going to get bad again. Not sleeping, not eating. I don't want to, I want to be OK."

She sat there, lingering in the silence, wishing more then anything, that he could just magically start talking and tell her how to make everything better. She had always came here, when she had a problem, finding it easier to talk it out out-loud "with" him, then with anyone else. No, he never gave her advice, but she was able to get it all out, and once that was done, she could think clearer and could usually come to a resolution.

She then went on to tell him about Derek being back, even though she really didn't know much. Then she moved onto Stiles. Telling her how her elementary school crush and friend, was back in her life. Explaining what that asshat Jackson had done, and how she was even happier that she had punched him. She knew he would have been proud of her, having used the lessons he had given her.

She was getting ready to go into a story about Hank, when she heard the door open. Turning around, she saw Derek standing there. She smiled, gesturing him to come over. He slowly made his way into the room, shutting the door behind him. She got up, going to give him a hug. He didn't return it at first, but he finally did. "I'm really glad you came to see him. I think it will be good, for both of you."

She gestured to her chair, letting him know to sit. "I'm going to go ahead and call my dad, tell him to come get me. You two spend some time together." She made her way to Peter, placing a kiss on his cheek and giving him a hug. She teared up a bit, still missing him hugging her back. This was always the hardest part, saying goodbye. She never knew if it would be the last time she would see him. "Bye Uncle Peter, love you. I'll be back soon."

Derek stood there, watching the interaction. He had always known Maxi and Peter were close, but it was weird to see that she still felt that way after all these years. "Hey, if you want, I can give you a ride home when I'm done."

"I'd really appreciate that. Thanks. I'll just be outside then."

He watched as she made her way from the room, before taking the chair next to his uncle.

Maxi took a seat in the waiting room, pulling her phone out and seeing she had a message from Allison.

_A – Hey, can't come by today. Rain check?_

_M – Not a problem. Of course, we can study anytime! See you tomorrow? _

_A – Yeah! Meet you at our lockers. _

Maxi sat there, playing Angry Birds on her phone, waiting for Derek. After about thirty minutes, the door opened, and he walked out. "Ready?"

She shook her head, putting her phone back in her purse and following him out to his car. She waved to the nurses as they left, walking quickly to keep up with Derek's long strides. He opened the passenger door for her again, shutting it once she was inside. She buckled up and waited for Derek to start the car. Once they had pulled out of the parking lot, she turned to him.

"You came. I'm really glad that you came. I think it will be really good for him."

"Why do you think that?"

"I read somewhere, that patients that have family and loved ones around are more likely to wake up from these kind of things."

"He's had you this whole time, and you've always been closer to him then Laura and I were. If you didn't wake him up, I don't think either of us could have helped."

"I'm not blood. I'm just a friends daughter. You're his family. You should visit him as much as you can. While you're here."

He could hear the hesitation and the accusation. She had something to say. "Well, say what you want to say," he almost snapped at her.

Maxi was taken back by his tone. "I'm sorry?"

"You have something to say, so say it Maxine. Get it out."

"OK. First of all, no one calls me Maxine! It's Maxi now. And second. Where have you been? Laura was always so vague. We woke up and you were both gone, a note saying you would keep in touch. Then you barely did that. You're uncle was here, dying and you both ran off. You never once came back, we only got a call a couple of times a year, a postcard here and there, and all we had was a p.o. box! You were needed here, and you just didn't care! We were family and you just left." By the end of her rant, she was breathless and loud.

Derek looked at her, from the corner of his eyes, seeing the red cheeks and her heavy breathing. "I'm sorry we didn't make it back for her funeral Maxine, Maxi, sorry."

She looked at him, her mouth moving like a fish. "I didn't even mention that. I wasn't talking about that."

"Yes you were. You may be upset about us leaving, but you're more upset that we didn't come back for the funeral. You don't have to say it. It's understandable. We should have come back," he said, pulling into her driveway. What Maxi didn't know though, is that Laura and Derek were both there for the funeral. They had only been in town for an hour, tops. Laura had said they would hate themselves if they didn't go, and she had been right. Seeing how upset she was about her thinking they hadn't been there, would have made him feel even worse if he really hadn't been there. Someday, maybe he'd tell her the truth. Now wasn't the time.

"Thank you, for bringing me home and for the apology. I appreciate it. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I apologize. Would you like to come in?"

"Not today. Maybe another time. I've got some things to do."

"Like what? Fixing up the house? You're staying there, aren't you?"

He was a little taken back by the question. He didn't think anyone would ask where he was staying. "Yes, I am. Fixing it up from the inside out."

She shook her head, looking out the window. "Where's Laura, Derek? Is she with you?"

"I'm not sure. We went our own ways a few months back, haven't heard a lot from her."

"And you're not worried?"

"No, not the slightest bit. Laura can more then take care of herself."

"If you hear from her, will you let her know I'd like to hear from her too. It's been a very long time since she's been in contact. I miss her."

Derek looked out the window, not wanting to meet her eyes. He hated that his sister was dead and this girl was sitting here talking about missing her, but he couldn't tell her the truth. She was safer not knowing about this side of his life. In the dark is where she belonged.

"I'll let you know if I hear from her. Promise."

She shook her head, opening her door. "Are you sure you don't want to come in?"

"Next time."

"OK, I'll see you around then. Bye Derek."

He gave her a small wave and pulled out of the driveway before she reached the front porch. She stood there, watching as he drove off down the street.  
He was hiding something. She didn't know how she knew it, she just had a feeling. She sat on the steps, chin resting in her palm.

Where was Laura?

**Finally! Seems like this chapter took forever. **

**Hope you all enjoyed it. **

**Don't forget to leave me a review, letting me know what you think. **

**If you don't speak up, I can't make the story the best it can be. **

**Something you don't like, something you want more of? **

**Thank you to Kalou, BrittWitt16, and emele807 for your reviews! **

**p.s. Hank Taylor is now "played" by Matthew Davis, Alaric on Vamp Diaries.**


	6. That's the Way the World Goes 'Round

**That's the way that the world goes 'round****  
****One minute you're up and the next you're down****  
****It's half an inch of water and you think you're gonna drown****  
****That's the way****that the world goes 'round**

**Miranda Lambert - That's The Way the World Goes 'Round**

After school on Monday, Maxi made her way to the lacrosse field. She really could not wait til her birthday! She'd finally get her own car and be able to go home when she wanted too. Once she reached the field, she waved to Danny, then pulled her book out of her bag. She had been trying to read The Maze Runner for the last year. It seemed like something always came up the moment she opened the book. She had just opened the book, reading half a page, before she heard a commotion on the field.

She looked up, seeing Coach yelling at Scott. That poor guy, he just couldn't catch a break. He was going up against Jackson and seemed like Jackson had won that round. Scott got back into position, and took off. This time, he took Jackson down. Jackson wasn't getting back up. She closed her book, sitting it down beside her, watching to see what would happen next. She noticed Scott seemed like he was hurt as well, watching as Stiles rushed over to his friend. Before Stiles could do much, Scott rushed off towards the locker room, Stiles close behind. As her eyes followed them off the field, she thought she saw Derek beside the bleachers. Looking back though, she saw that the space was empty. What business would he have at a lacrosse game anyway? He hadn't played in school, being more of a basketball fan then this. She looked back to the field, seeing that Jackson was being carried off the field. She loaded her stuff up, making her way to Danny.

"He going to be OK?"

"Yeah, think he hurt his shoulder. Taking him in for x-rays. I'm going to ride with him, stay till his parents get there. I'll give you a call later, let you know what's going on."

Danny gave her a hug, making to follow Jackson. Maxi looked for Renny, seeing him talking to a couple of the other guys.

"Renny! Is practice over?"

Before Renny could answer, his friend Dallas made his way over to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, "Yeah, Coach called it after McCall creamed Jackson."

Renny threw his friend a glare, but he didn't get the message. He shook his head, knowing he'd need to have a talk with the guy. His little sister was off limits to his friends, and they should have known that by now.

They made their way to the locker room, Dallas and Maxi talking and laughing the whole way. When they reached the locker room, they all stopped. The doors were wide open and the fire extinguisher was laying on the floor by the door. Maxi took a step back, letting the guys go in. They closed the door, but she couldn't help but wonder what was going on.

Ten minutes later, the door flung open. Dallas made his way out, smiling when he saw her standing there. She really wasn't sure what to think. She had never thought about dating a friend of her brothers. She didn't think her brother would approve, that's for sure. With his short blonde hair and perfect smile, she couldn't help but smile back. He made his way over to her, leaning on the wall next to her.

"What was going on?"

"Oh, who knows. McCall and that weirdo Stiles said something about rough housing and knocking it over. More like rough sex, probably," he said, laughing at his own joke.

When he noticed she wasn't laughing with him, he stopped, looking over to her. She had a straight face, not finding him funny at all.

"Those boys are my friends. I'd appreciate it if you didn't talk badly about them, especially around me," she said, crossing her arms.

"Whoa, OK, sorry. Didn't know you guys were cool. I've never seen you around them before. Won't happen again, promise," he said, crossing his heart. "Cross my heart, hope to die. Forgive me?"

She couldn't help but laugh a little bit. He really was cute. Before she could say anything, the door swung open again, this time revealing Stiles. He stopped, faltering at seeing the two being so chummy. Dallas was definitely the dick of the team, worse then Jackson. He gave Maxi a small nod, her smiling and waving, before continuing down the hall.

She turned back to Dallas, but before she could say anything, the door swung open again, Renny walking out. "Lets go," he said, not even stopping to wait for her. She said a quick bye to Dallas, then rushed off after her brother.

"Renny! Slow down. Why are you walking so quickly? I can't keep up in these shoes."

"Come on Maxi. Let's go!"

She didn't know what was going on, but something definitely was. She finally reached the truck, throwing her stuff in and climbing in quickly. She didn't even have the door shut before he was pealing out of the parking lot.

"I don't want you talking to him. He's not a good guy."

"Renny, we were just talking. Nothing is going on. Please, slow down."

He heard the tone of panic in her voice. He looked at the dash, seeing he was speeding. Looking over to her, he could see her holding on to the handle, knuckles white, eyes squeezed shut.

"Shit. Sorry Max. I'm slowing down, I'm slowing down."

He slowed down to 2 below the speed limit, hoping that would calm her down. He really didn't want to have to explain to his dad that he gave his sister a panic attack because his friend was a douche bag. That definitely would not go over well. He stopped at the red light, turning to his sister. Her eyes were still pressed shut, but she had let go of the handle.

"Maxi, are you OK? I'm so sorry. I just, I really don't like that guy, and to see him swarming around you, it just pissed me off. I should have calmed down before I got in the car."

She shook her head, letting him know she heard him. He turned back, waiting for the light to turn green. When it did, he took off slowly, letting her know he was paying attention and being careful. He hated that she had to go through this.

They drove the rest of the way in silence, and when they got home, Maxi immediately jumped out of the car. She hated being like this. She wished there was a magical way to get rid of her anxiety over vehicles. Every time something like that happened, it made her worry about what would happen when she did start to drive. Would she be able to handle being behind the wheel? It was times like this, that she questioned that.

Once they got inside, they both made their way to their rooms. Maxi wanted to do her homework before Danny called. Hopefully he'd be calling soon. Honestly, she was really surprised she hadn't heard from Lydia. If she didn't call her before Danny, she would call her as soon as they got off the phone.

She had been working on her math for about an hour when her cell rang. She jumped off the bed, racing to grab her purse off her desk. She pulled her phone out, seeing that it was in fact, Danny.

"Danny! Is everything OK?"

"Maxi, hey. Yeah, everything is OK. He just separated his shoulder. They fixed him up, he should be able to play on Saturday but their not clearing him til Friday. They'll check him over again then. Just has to take it easy til then to make sure he doesn't irritate it anymore."

"Has anyone talked to Lydia? Did she come storming into the hospital, demanding answers yet?"

"I saw Jackson's phone light up a few times, but he never answered. I'm sure she'll be at the house when he gets there."

They talked a little bit more, before Maxi had to get off and go eat dinner. The family ate dinner, talking about their days and what they had coming up. Maxi reminded her dad and Renny that she started tutoring again Wednesday, and would need to be picked up at the school late. Isaac had practice til at least 5 or 6, depending on Coach's mood, and then 2 hours of tutoring. She had a deal with Mr. Harris and the night janitor, that allowed her to be there after hours. She just had to let the janitor know when she was leaving so he could lock up behind her.

Once dinner was done, Maxi made her way back up to her room, grabbing her cell and flopping down on the bed. She dialed Lydia and waited for the girl to answer.

"Maxi, why is it that you were at practice, saw my boyfriend get hurt, and I am just now hearing from you?"

Maxi smiled, expecting this reaction. "Sorry Lyd. I figured Danny would get a hold of you, since he rode to the hospital with Jackson. Not like he was seriously injured or anything, right?"

She heard Lydia sigh, "He just separated it. He has to rest the rest of the week, then go in on Friday to get checked out. I told him, he needs to tell them to give him a cortisone shot. That will solve everything. He won't be in any pain, he'll play great. Win-win if you ask me."

"Is he going to do it?"

"I told him too. So probably."

She could envision the smirk that her best friend wore on her face. What Lydia wanted, Lydia got.

"Well, I'm just getting home from checking in on Jackson. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Ride?"

"Sure, why not. Give Renny a break. See you in the am, Lyd."

"Bye!"

Maxi finished up her homework, took a shower, and said goodnight. She crawled into bed, exhausted. It wasn't long before her eyes shut, and she was out for the night.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

It was finally the end of the week, and Maxi couldn't have been happier. Her course load was picking up, now that teachers were done being nice after the break, she was trying to get her tutoring stuff all figured out for the next session, and Lydia had been freaking out all week about Jackson.

She had done everything she could to keep her mind off it, shopping on Tuesday and a study session on Thursday, but nothing was working. It was the only thing the girl would talk about.

Then today, she had heard that Scott wasn't going to be playing in the game tomorrow. It had been the only thing she had talked about. At lunch, Maxi had finally just tuned the conversation out, picking at her salad. She felt someone nudge her arm, looking over to see it was Allison.

"Everything OK?"

"Yeah, sorry. Just tired of talking about lacrosse and Jackson's injury. Actually, I think I'm going to head to the library for the rest of lunch. I'll see you in class, OK?"

Allison shook her head, watching her walk away.

When Maxi entered the library, she smiled to the librarian, before making her way to the back of the stacks. She had twenty minutes left in lunch, maybe she could get a chapter or two read. When she got to the last row, she turned to go down the aisle, stopping when she saw Isaac sitting on the floor. He had a half eaten sandwich in his hand, a book resting on his knees. He looked up, hearing her enter. He gave her a quick glance before looking back down to his book. She walked down the aisle, stopping beside him.

"Is this spot taken?"

He didn't say anything, just gestured for her to sit down. She threw her bag down, sitting down carefully in her skirt. She didn't say anything either, just grabbed her book out and started reading.

She'd been reading for a few minutes when she couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Do you always eat in here?"

She thought he was going to ignore her, but after a few moments, he spoke up. "Most days, yes. It's easier to just come in here, and eat while I read or study, then to go in there, and eat by myself. If just gives them more ammunition."

"Isaac, you could always sit with me. You know I would never let them talk bad about you."

"Maxi, you can't protect me. Not from them, not from anything. Haven't you learned that by now," he asked, getting upset. He didn't need her protection, he didn't need her. He started putting his stuff in his bag, just wanting to get away from here. Maxi realized she had said the wrong thing, and tried to back track.

"Isaac, you know what I meant. I just wanted to help."

"You can't help! You shouldn't have tried to help, you just made things worse."

Suddenly, they both realized that this conversation was no longer about the school bullies.

"I'm not talking about this, not here, not anywhere. Just leave me alone, alright?"

She shook her head, letting him go. She didn't bother opening her book again, just put it back in her bag and made to leave as well.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

It was in math class, that things with Lydia came to a head. Maxi, Lydia, and Scott were at the board, seeing who could solve the problem first. Maxi was in the zone, just wanting to get the problem before Lydia. She could hear Lydia talking to Scott, something about him not playing.

"Lydia, just leave him alone. I am sure he has his reasons."

"Maxi, hush. Were just having a little chit-chat, right Scott?"

She looked to Scott, and you could tell he didn't know what to say. Did he tell the truth or stay on the less then bad side of Lydia. "Yeah, just a chit-chat."

"Don't let her scare you Scott, her bark is worse then her bite."

Lydia threw a glare at Maxi, before turning back to Scott. Maxi finished her problem, looking to the teacher for confirmation that it was right. As she started to walk down the aisle to her desk, she heard Lydia walking behind her, and then the teacher telling Scott he wasn't even close to solving his problem. Maxi took her seat and watched Scott for another moment, before he gave up and took his seat.

Class ended and Maxi walked out with Lydia, ready for the day to be over. She saw Scott go to his locker, then suddenly Stiles was rushing past them, grabbing Scott and pulling him down the hall. She laughed at the two of them, stopping at her locker. Lydia leaned against her neighboring locker, while Maxi gathered her books.

"So, what are we doing tonight?"

"Whatever you want to do. Could do a movie night or something, my place?"

"Is your brother going to be home?"

"First ew. That's my brother, he is off limits to you. Second, yes. After work he will be, but he'll go straight to bed. Gotta rest up for the game tomorrow."

"Fine. Your house it is then. You've got the movies, right?"

"They never leave! We watch the same thing every time."

"What can I say? I like what I like."

Maxi slammed her locker, then made to walk to the car with Lydia. As they turned the corner, Maxi ran into Stiles.

"Maxi, sorry. So sorry. Are you OK?"

"Walk much, spaz?"

"Lydia! Be nice," she said, glaring at her friend. "I'm fine Stiles. Thank you."

Looking over his shoulder, she saw his dad walking off in the opposite direction.

"Stiles, is that your Dad? What's he doing at the school? Is everything OK?"

"Oh, him. Yeah, things are fine, I suppose. If you call there being a city wide curfew for all teenagers okay. I swear he is trying to ruin my life!"

Maxi laughed, then felt Lydia grab her hand and start to pull.

"Sorry Miles, we really have to get going. Things to do, people to see, I'm sure you know how that is. Have a great life!"

Before Maxi could say anything, Lydia was dragging her out the school doors. She turned her head, "Bye Stiles! See you at the game tomorrow!"

He waved, but if he said anything, she couldn't hear it.

Two hours later, the girls were sitting at Maxi's house, looking through her nail polish collection, when Lydia's phone rang.

"It's Jackson. Hold on."

She grabbed her phone, going into the bathroom. Five minutes later, she walked out, threw Maxi's coat at her, and said, "Let's go. Jackson needs a ride to the hospital, and I want to make sure he gets that shot."

"And I'm coming why?"

"To keep me company, duh."

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the hospital. Jackson and Lydia went into the exam room, while Maxi plugged her headphones into her phone, staying in the lobby. She had her phone in her inside pocket, since Lydia had rushed her out and she'd not had time to grab her purse. She put her buds in her ears, turning the music up and rested her head against the wall. It wasn't long before she was asleep.

Lydia exited the exam room, leaving the doctor alone to give Jackson his shot. As she was walking down the hall, she saw that Miles kid from earlier. He was leaning against the nurse station, staring at something. As she got closer, she realized he was staring at Maxi and Maxi looked like she had fallen asleep, listening to her ear buds.

"Creeper much?"

The kid jumped, turning to see who was talking to him.

"What?"

"I said creeper. Why are you staring at my best friend, while she sleeps, might I add."

"I... I wasn't staring. I was just looking, at her, for longer then a second. I was, I was worried, yeah. She's sleeping, in a hospital waiting room. I was just making sure no one hurt her."

"Like who, you? She's known around this hospital, no one would let her get hurt. Besides, I'm here now. You can go."

"Yeah, OK. I'll just," and he pointed off down the hall.

Lydia shook her head, waving him down the hall. Before Stiles could take a step, Maxi sat up, stretching. She smiled, only seeing Stiles. Lydia saw the smile, and immediately she felt that she needed to put a stop to wherever her friends mind was going. She should not be smiling like that for this kid.

"Stiles, Hi. What are you doing here?"

"Oh, Scott brought his mom dinner. Just waiting on them."

"Mrs. McCall, that's his mom, right? She's a very sweet lady."

"Yeah, yeah she's great," he said, seeing the look that Lydia was giving him. She clearly wanted him gone. But before he could say he needed to go, Maxi patted the seat beside her, gesturing for him to sit. Lydia gave him a look, but so did Maxi. He'd rather be on Lydia's bad side, then on Maxi's. He took the seat beside her, looking down the hall to see if Scott had came out yet.

"So, did Scott tell you about tomorrow night?"

"Tomorrow night?"

"After the game? A bunch of us are going to go out. Nothing certain yet, but you should come."

"Oh yeah, he mentioned that. Sounds fun, I'm game for whatever."

"Great! I have your number now, so once we have a definite decision, I'll let you know."

"Cool, thanks. Hey, there's Scott. I'll talk to you tomorrow, at the game?"

"Yep, be there with bells on," she said, laughing and waving to Scott.

"Bye Maxi," he said, walking off. Before he turned the corner, he turned back, "Bye Lydia."

She raised her eyebrow at him, watching as he walked off.

As soon as he was out of hearing range, Lydia whipped around, "What the hell was that?"

Maxi leaned back, "What do you mean? That was Stiles. You know Stiles."

"He's not exactly part of our group Maxi. You never seemed to have an issue with it either. What has suddenly changed?"

"Lydia, it's really not a big deal. We had him over for dinner on Saturday."

"You did what? How am I just hearing about this?"

"Because you are reacting exactly how we thought you would, so I didn't say anything."

"Wait, we? Someone else knew about this, before me? Who? Danny?"

"Yes, Danny. He saw me hanging out with Stiles at the party, and asked about it. I would have told you, eventually. I just didn't really want to deal with you reacting like, well, like this. He's a good guy, and I don't know why Jackson and you have such a problem with him."

Lydia was taken back. She didn't have a problem with the kid, she was just very protective of her friends, especially Maxi. Maxi was the only real true girl friend that she had. She wouldn't let anyone hurt her.

"I'm sorry. I don't have a problem with the kid, but I do have a problem with you keeping things from me. I promise, I'll try to be nicer to your friend Miles."

"Stiles!"

"Whatever, look there's Jackson. Lets take him home, go back to your house, and curl up in the living room. You can even pick the movie."

"Oh really? Is this an apology?"

"The closest you're going to get. Besides, I'll be to busy staring at your brother to pay attention to a movie."

Maxi slapped her friends arm before getting up and following her out of the hospital.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

The next day, Maxi and Lydia spent the morning in Maxi's closet. They both liked to go through their closets every now and then, clearing out stuff they hadn't worn in a while and just making room for the new stuff that was bound to get bought.

"So, what should we do after the game tonight? I'm thinking something simple, maybe just go get dinner? Maybe go to In N Out? A shake and fries sounds so good."

"They do have really good salads there, for a burger joint. I suppose that doesn't sound bad. Are you really going to invite that Miles kid?"

Maxi had stopped correcting her, knowing it was now her way of making her point of not liking a new person in their group. She'd just have to warn Stiles of what she was doing.

"Yes, I am going to invite Stiles. Isaac too. It's just a group hang, it doesn't mean anything."

She walked out of the closet, grabbing her phone and sending a group text to the two mentioned boys.

M - In N Out after the game tonight. You in?

She put her phone down. She didn't expect an answer from Isaac, and wasn't sure if she would get on from Stiles either, since she had mentioned the hang out idea last night. She set her phone back down, then went back to helping Lydia.

A few hours later, they were finally done. Renny had carried all the boxes down, there was only 3, and loaded them in his truck. He would drop them off on his way to the game. Lydia and Maxi were now back in her closet, trying to decide what to wear to the game.

Finally, they decided on a pair of dark washed skinnies and a maroon sweater. She would finish it off with a leather jacket and a pair of matching knee high boots. While Maxi got dressed, Lydia went through the scarfs. She found one for Maxi, then grabbed one that she wanted to borrow. When Maxi was dressed, Lydia did her eye makeup, give her a smoky maroon eye to match her sweater. Maxi straightened her hair, planning on wearing a beanie to the game since it would be chilly. Once she was completely dressed, she put on a watch and some rose gold studs. She then rummaged through her closet looking for some gloves. She finally found a pair of zebra ones, that she would still be able to use her phone with since they had the fingerless option.

Once that was all done, Lydia threw a blue purse at her, telling her it would add color and accentuate the birds in her scarf. She didn't question her, just started putting stuff in it. She checked her wallet, making sure she didn't need to ask Dad for money. She then grabbed her phone, checking it. She had a 3 new messages.

S - It's a date.

S - I didn't mean date date, just like, an appointment. Set time. Group hang. See you at the game.

She giggled, he was adorable when he got flustered, even through text. She checked the next message.

I - No

Well, at least he had replied. They were making steps, even if they were baby steps. She put her phone in the bag, following Lydia downstairs. She was going to drop Maxi off at Allison's before the game, then head home to make her posters for Jackson. She didn't even bother asking if Maxi wanted to help. She knew the answer. They said bye to Hank and Gabi, saying they would see them at the game, then made their way outside.

Lydia was a very careful driver, but even more so when Maxi was in the car. She had been present for a few of her worse attacks after the accident, and didn't want to ever be the cause of that. She always went the speed limit, and made sure she stopped at all signs and lights. They reached Allison's, Maxi thanking Lydia for the ride.

"Let me know when you head up there, that way we know who will be there first and can save seats, OK?"

Maxi agreed, then made her way up to the house. She knocked on the front door, hearing Mrs. Argent saying she was coming. She opened the door, greeting Maxi with a smile. She stepped back letting her in, asking her how she had been.

"I'm doing good, thank you. Excited for the first game of the year. Will you be coming with us?"

Mrs. Argent laughed, "No, I'm not a fan of sports. Allison is in her room, you can head on up."

She thanked her and made her way up the stairs.

Maxi and Allison spent the next couple of hours going through boxes of stuff that Allison wasn't sure if she should keep or not. Memorabilia from the past places they had lived. They were looking through pictures and notes and any other random stuff that she had saved. It was almost time to go to the game, so Allison got up, shutting her blinds. They were making their way down stairs, when a loud crash was heard from outside. They looked at each other, then rushed out the front door.

When they got outside, they saw Scott on the ground, with Mr. Argent leaning over him.

Allison rushed over, "Dad, what the hell are you doing?"

"He came out of nowhere, Allison."

"Are you trying to kill him?"

"No, no, of course not. He just ran out into the driveway."

Finally, Maxi spoke up. "Scott, are you OK?"

"I"m sorry. It's my fault. I'm sorry."

Allison looked him over, "You okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I swear. Sorry I hit your car," he said to Mr. Argent, "I was just coming to say hi."

Allison laughed and Maxi spoke up again. "Well, that was definitely a great way to meet the parents."

Mr. Argent spoke up, "You sure you're okay?"

Allison helped Scott up, "Yeah. Yeah, completely," he said, grunting as he got off the ground. "I should go, I've got a lacrosse game to get to. You're still coming right?"

Maxi watched as Mr. Argent watched Scott and Allison. He did not look happy.

"Of course I'm coming."

"We all are," Mr. Argent suddenly said. Both Allison and Scott turned to look at him.

"Looks like tonight is going to be a great night, right guys," Maxi asked, getting a small smile from all three of them.

Maxi and Mr. Argent made their way inside, leaving Allison to say goodbye to Scott.

"Maxi, do you know that boy?"

"Yes sir. That's Scott McCall. He's a really nice guy. I've known him since we were little. He'll be good to her, promise," Maxi answered while pulling her leather jacket on.

Mr. Argent shook his head, going to talk to him wife.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

When the 3 of them reached the field, they immediately ran into Hank and Gabi. Maxi introduced everyone and immediately the two fathers started chatting. A friendship was blooming. Maxi had text Lydia, letting her know they were there and that she would save her a seat. They climbed into the bleachers, Allison next to her dad and Hank next the Mr. Argent. Maxi and Gabi sat in front of Allison, and Gabi would not stop grinning.

"What are you so excited about? You usually hate coming to these things."

Gabi didn't even stop smiling to answer, "Just looking at it in a new light. Lacrosse is exciting."

Suddenly Gabi was waving like a crazy person. Looking up, Maxi saw that Stiles was looking over here. She caught his eye, and waved at him. He waved back, and Gabi squealed. What was going on with her? Maxi watched her out of the corner of her eye, wondering what the deal was. She was done waving, but she still had a huge smile on her face. Maxi looked for Danny, finding him on the opposite end of the bench, nowhere near where Gabi was staring. She would have to talk to her about this later.

Maxi saw Lydia making her way down the sidelines, going straight up to Scott. She grabbed his jersey, yanking him close. Maxi couldn't hear what was being said, but she was sure, after the week of fretting, that it wasn't nice. Scott said something back, causing Lydia to smile. She then brushed his jersey off, said something else, and walked off. When she saw Maxi watching her, she shot her a smile, taking the seat beside her.

"What was that about?"

"Just reminding him what's at stake tonight."

"Lydia, would it kill you to be nice to the guy?"

"I am being nice. I am giving him fair warning that if he screws up tonight, he will loose Allison. That sounds nice to me."

Maxi rolled her eyes, astounded at her friends logic. She was sure Allison didn't care about lacrosse or Scott's win/loss record. But Lydia would never see it that way.

"There's your, friend Miles. Think he'll play tonight?"

"He's not first line, so probably not."

Lydia made a pouty face, then turned to talk to Allison.

Maxi watched as the players ran out on to the field, the game starting. She watched along with everyone else, cheering and booing when necessary. She might not have cheered for Jackson, but she did cheer for Danny and her brother. She had a sign for both, and switched back and forth depending on who was doing what. She saw Lydia and Allison holding up a Jackson sign, saw Scott see it too. She watched as a group of guys, minus Scott, huddled in the middle. With Jackson and Renny in the middle, she could only imagine what they were discussing. It quickly became apparent what the conversation was about, as they all iced Scott out.

She heard Mr. Argent ask which one was Scott, Lydia answering him. Lydia got up, raising her Jackson poster, and Allison reluctantly followed. Suddenly, Scott snatched the ball and he was gone. He scored, and everyone cheered! Maxi laughed, seeing Stiles doing a little dance on the sideline. Everyone was up, but Lydia. You could hear the coach telling the team to pass to McCall, and they did. So did the other team.

The rest of the game, Scott was on fire. He made the goal, tying the game. Scott got the ball again, and every one waited with baited breath to see if he would score the winning goal. With seconds left, he threw it in, winning the game.

The crowd rushed the field, Maxi and Allison together. Allison saw Scott run off towards the locker room and followed him. Maxi looked around, trying to find Stiles. He may not have played but she still wanted to talk to him. She found him over by his dad. His dad was on the phone, but Stiles was still waiting to talk to him. Before Stiles could ask his dad what the phone call was about, he interrupted him.

"Son, is that girl waiting for you?"

Stiles turned to look, seeing Maxi standing there, watching them. He smiled, "Maybe this time."

"Well don't keep her waiting. Go on."

He told his dad his plans, forgetting that he had wanted to talk to him. He grabbed his stick and made his way to her.

"Waiting for me this time?"

"As a matter of fact, I am. Allison followed Scott into the locker room and I really didn't want to walk in on anything so I decided to wait for you. We rode here with Allison's dad, so I was wondering if the two of us could ride with Scott and you in the jeep?"

He remembered what had almost happened at the end of the game, and started to walk faster. "Yeah, that sounds good. We just have to get cleaned up and changed."

They made their way into the locker room, the rest of the team still on the field being congratulated.

When they reached the locker room, Stiles opened the door, motioning for Maxi to go first. It was dark, so she walked slowly. As she went to turn a corner, she stopped, Stiles slamming into her. She quickly turned around, trying to push him back out. He wasn't having it and went around her to see what was going on. When he saw Scott and Allison kissing, he quickly turned around now pushing her out of the door.

"That was what I was trying to avoid," she said laughing as they walked back down the hallway. They stopped at the end, both leaning their shoulder against the wall and facing each other.

"Wanna do what they were doing," Stiles asked, raising his eyebrows.

Maxi laughed, stepping closer. She placed her hand on his chest, and saw his face go from amused to shocked. She trailed her hand up to his neck, playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. She leaned in, close enough that she could whisper in his ear. "I think you should buy me dinner first."

She stepped back, looking at his reaction. He looked like a fish out of water. "That was not nice."

She began to say something else, when they heard footsteps. Looking down the hall, they saw Allison walking towards them. "Stiles."

"Hey, yeah."

"Maxi, you ready to go?"

"Actually, Stiles and Scott are our ride, if you're OK with that? Figured since we ended up riding with your dad, we could ride with them to the restaurant."

"Yeah, that sounds good. Let's go tell my dad, OK?"

Allison started to walk off, and Maxi turned back to Stiles. "Meet you guys at the jeep?"

Stiles shook his head, "Yeah, well be out in like, 15 minutes, tops."

She shook her head, then made to follow Allison out of the sports complex.

Both girls looked for their fathers, finding them standing on the edge of the field talking. They explained their plans, Mr. Argent needing a little more persuading then Hank. Maxi looked for Gabi, but found out that she had ran into a friend and went to stay the night with them. Probably for the best. She always wanted Maxi to take her with and tonight Maxi was not in the mood for her little sister. She just wanted to hang out with her friends and have a fun night. Which with the group she would be with, would probably be a hard enough task, without adding a 12 year old to the mix.

Once they said their goodbyes to their dads, the girls made for the jeep. The boys weren't there yet, so they leaned against it, Maxi listening as Allison went on about the kiss.

They finally saw the boys walking towards them. Maxi had texted Lydia, telling her they would meet at the restaurant.

Stiles unlocked the jeep, and Maxi went to climb in the back. Scott stopped her, telling her Allison and him would sit back there. She smiled, sending a wink to Allison.

"No hanky panky in my jeep. You will not break this in before I have had a chance too."

Everyone laughed, and Maxi climbed into the jeep. She once again was unable to get the seatbelt to budge, so Stiles leaned over, doing it for her.

"Is this going to happen every time? Do you have to buckle Scott in?"

"Scott doesn't usually wear his. I tell him he should, but he doesn't listen."

They took off, the four of them making idle small talk til they reached In N Out. When they got there, Stiles rushed around, opening the door for Maxi. She thanked him and watched as he helped Allison out as well.

The four walked in, going over to the tables and Maxi started to direct the boys on how many tables they would need. Once they had 3 tables together, they went up and ordered. As Maxi was pulling her wallet out, Stiles stepped in front of her, placing a $20 on the counter and ordering.

"Stiles, you don't have to pay for me."

"Hey, I'm a gentleman."

"You're only paying cause of what I said earlier."

"No, I would have insisted either way. It's the gentlemanly thing to do. Now hush, I need to order curly fries."

The cashier put out 2 cups, so Maxi grabbed them and made her way over the soda machine. She got herself Pepsi, then realized she didn't know what to get Stiles. Before she could turn to ask, she heard Scott behind her.

"Mountain Dew. It's the only soda he drinks."

She smiled, and thanked him. Once the soda cups were full, she took them back to the table. The other 3 joined her with food soon, and they started eating. Maxi had gotten curly fries, and as she went to eat her first one, she did a little dance in her seat. She heard Stiles laugh and turned to see him watching her.

"Did you just dance over a fry?"

"Not just any fry. Curly fries. They are the gold of food, I swear."

"Oh I totally agree. I could so live off of them."

They continued eating the two of them talking,when they heard the door open. Expecting it to be the rest of their group, Maxi turned. But instead of seeing her friends, it was her brother and his group of friends. She waved, then took her seat again. Stiles and her continued to talk, playing with their curly fries.

Suddenly, the chair across from her was pulled out and Dallas was sitting down. He flashed her a smile, placing a straw in his drink.

"Maxi. Funny seeing you here."

"Dallas. Why aren't you sitting with the guys?"

"Oh they're going to sit here too. You have all these chairs, and only four of you. If you didn't want to be joined, you should have took a booth."

She rolled her eyes, "We're actually waiting for some more friends."

At that moment, her phone rang. It was Danny.

"Danny? Where are you guys?"

"Sorry, were not coming. Jackson is all sorts of pissy. He really shouldn't be around McCall right now. Lydia and I are going with him back to his house. Sorry."

She sighed, of course Jackson was the reason they weren't here. "Hey, not your fault. Have fun, I guess."

They said their goodbyes and she put her phone back in her purse.

"Everything okay," Stiles asked her.

"Yeah, Jackson is just being a whiny ass and refuses to come hang out if Scott is here basically."

"Oh, well, we can go I guess."

"No, you really don't have to do that. I'm having way more fun with you, then I would if he was here. We'd just fight and make everyone else uncomfortable with our anger towards each other. Stay," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder. He shook his head, then went back to his food.

"Sorry to break up the moment. Great game tonight Stiles."

Maxi's head snapped up, sending a glare at the boy across from her. What the hell was he doing?

Stiles looked up as well, a confused look on his face. "I um I didn't play. But you were great."

Dallas had a smug look on his face, looking at Maxi, "Thanks kid. I did do a pretty great job."

Maxi swung her leg out, kicking Dallas in the shin. He groaned in pain, sending a look at the girl. The chair next to him was pulled out, and Renny sat down.

"Sis. You ok?"

She wiped the look of anger off her face, looking at her brother. "Yeah, I'm fine. Good game tonight."

He shook his head, shaking off the praise. "Thanks."

He started to eat, devouring his food. Maxi went back to talk to Stiles, and Renny watched his friend and sister. Dallas was eating, but he was watching the two across from them as he did.

Renny leaned over, close enough that only Dallas could hear.

"Would you quit? That's my sister. You know she's off limits."

Dallas turned to the guy, "She's almost 16. Isn't she old enough to make her own decision?"

"Yes, she is and I don't know if you've noticed this or not but she's ignoring you for the nerd beside her. Maybe you're not her type."

Dallas sent him a cocky grin, looking back at the girl. The nerd had just said something that caused her to throw her head back and laugh loudly. He watched as the nerd watched her, and then turned back to Renny. "I'm everyone's type."

Renny stared at the guy for a moment, then looked at his sister. She had leaned into the kid, whispering something in his ear. The kid laughed, and so did Maxi. They stayed leaned in close, talking animatedly. He hadn't seen his sister like this in a long time, and he wasn't going to let the guy beside him mess with that.

"Seriously. I'm telling you, leave her alone."

Dallas looked at Renny, trying to tell how serious he was about this. He put his hands up, "OK Ren, I'll back off." But in his head, he was thinking of ways that he could continue this little game without him knowing.

Renny's phone started ringing, and he saw that it was his dad. Checking the time, he saw that it wasn't time for curfew or anything yet, so he answered it.

"Dad? Everything ok?"

"Renny. Are you with your sister?"

He could hear the worry in his voice. "Yeah, were at In N Out, a group of us. What's up?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to need you two to cut your evening short and head home. I need to speak with both of you."

Renny thought about protesting but from the tone of his fathers voice, he knew it wasn't a good idea. Something was going on, and they needed to get home.

"OK, we'll finish eating then head home."

They said goodbye and Renny put his phone up. "Maxi, that was Dad. He said he needs us to come home when were done eating."

"Why? Is everything OK?"

"He didn't say anything was wrong, but he didn't sound... Normal? Hurry up and finish."

The group finished their food in silence, no one knowing what to say. Most of the table could only imagine what the two were thinking. Stiles finished first, then once Maxi was done, he immediately grabbed their trash and took it away.

"I'll meet you outside, OK Ren?"

He shook his head, then watched as Maxi motioned for Stiles to follow her outside.

They leaned against the truck, neither knowing what to say.

"Any idea what could be going on?"

"No, everything was fine when we left him at the game. I really have no idea what could be going on."

He stepped in front of her, placing his hands on her upper arms. "I'm sure it's nothing too bad. He would have wanted you home sooner if it was, right?"

She shook her head, every bad thing that could be wrong running through her head. "Yeah, I'm sure you're right. Sorry I have to cut the evening short, I was having a really good time. Even if Scott and Allison were in their own little world the whole time."

He laughed, "Yeah, it's definitely going to be awkward once you leave."

"Sorry. I'm sure they'll be ok with leaving soon. Then you can go home and do whatever it is you do, play video games and watch anime?"

"Video games yes, not so much on the anime."

They heard the door open, turning to see Renny walking towards them. He unlocked the truck and Stiles opened the door for her.

Before she climbed up, she gave him a hug.

"Will you call me? Let me know everything's ok?"

"Would you worry if I didn't?"

He leaned back from the hug, so he could see her face. "All night long."

She smiled, "Yes, I'll let you know. I'd hate for you to miss out on your beauty sleep."

They laughed and she got into the car. He waved as they drove off, then went back inside.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

When Stiles got home an hour later, his dad was in the living room. He didn't look happy.

"Dad? Everything alright," he asked, taking a seat beside him.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Things are fine. Just trying to figure this out."

"Figure what out? Maybe I can help."

The Sheriff didn't say anything for a moment, then turned to his son. "We had to let Hale go this evening. Know why?"

Stiles shook his head, waiting for his dad to continue.

"They ruled the girl killed by an animal, not by a human. Since Hale is very obviously a human, we had to let him go."

"What kind of an animal, did they say?"

"Nothing official yet. We're still looking into it. That's not even the worse part."

He took his glasses off, rubbing his eyes. Stiles could tell this case was stressing his dad out. He felt bad for the guy, not having all the facts.

"What's the worse part?"

"We got an I.D. on the girl. Turns out, she's Laura Hale. Derek's older sister."

Stiles jaw dropped. The dead girl in the woods, the girl that was torn in half, was Derek's sister. The girl that just last week Maxi had been talking about missing and hoping to see soon.

Could that be why her Dad had called her home? Had he found out? He quickly grabbed his phone, checking to see if she had tried getting ahold of him.

"Son, what's wrong?"

"Maxi. Her family was close to the Hales. Still are from what she's told me. When I was at dinner last week, we were talking about them. She was telling me about how Laura was like a big sister to her, how she had kept in touch after the fire, while they were traveling. She said that she was hoping to get a visit from her soon. She's going to be devastated. Her dad called her brother while we were out eating, and asked them to come home. I'm worried that Derek went there, told Hank, and now Hank is going to tell her. It's going to wreck her Dad."

The Sheriff put a hand on his sons shoulder, watching him as he spoke.

"She told me she would let me know what was going on, but I haven't heard from her yet. Should I try getting a hold of her? I don't know what to do."

"I can't tell you what to do, but all I can say, is that she is going to need someone to be there for her. Give her a little bit of time, give her a chance to come to you," he said, getting up. "I'm going to try and get some sleep. Please son, let me know if you leave. It's after the curfew I put in place."

Stiles shook his head, staring at his phone. He would give her another hour. If he hadn't heard from her within that time, he would just send a text. Let her know he was here, if she needed him.

Stiles had watched two very bad episodes of Two and a Half Men, and still hadn't heard from Maxi. He pulled his phone out, pulling up a new message.

S - Everything ok? Hadn't heard from you and I was getting worried.

He sat his phone in his lap, watching as an episode of Big Bang Theory started. It wasn't through the opening credits before he felt his phone buzz. He swiped the screen, pulling up the new message.

M - Can you come over?

That's all it said. He quickly replied with an on my way, before running up the stairs.

He opened his dads door, just a crack. He was out. He ran back down the stairs and out the front door. He might have been breaking a couple of traffic laws, but he was okay with that tonight.

When he pulled up into the circle drive, he could see a figure sitting on stairs. He shut the jeep off, and jumped out. He pulled his jacket closer to him, the chill nipping at his skin. He made his way to the stairs taking a seat beside her. Neither of them said anything and he really didn't know what to say. He didn't know if she knew about Laura or not, so he didn't want to lead with that.

"Maxi? Are you ok?"

In a monotone voice, she spoke. "Laura's dead. The body they found in the woods, was Laura."

He didn't say anything, once again at a loss for words.

"Did you know?"

"What," he asked, taken back by the line of questioning.

"Did you know? Did your dad tell you?"

"He did, but not til just a little bit ago. I didn't want to say anything, in case you didn't know yet. I didn't think I should be the one to deliver news like that. I'm sorry."

He watched as she shook her head. Looking at her, he saw that she was just in her sweater, jeans, and socks from the game. She had to be freezing.

"Why don't we go inside? You look cold."

"I'm fine. I can't feel it."

He shook his head, once again not knowing what to do. He thought she would be more upset, thought she would be crying.

"Who would do such a thing? What did Laura ever do to deserve that kind of death?"

"I don't know."

"Why was she even in town? Why would she come back and not tell us, tell me?"

He could hear the tone of her voice changing. What started out as unemotional and shut off, was now becoming strained and bordering on hysterical. This was more what he had expected. He didn't know what he should do though. He wasn't sure if touching her was a good idea, so he just scooted a little bit closer, reminding her that was there.

Suddenly, she started sobbing. Without thinking, he slid closer, their sides touching, and wrapped his arms around her. She buried her face in his chest, gripping onto his shirt. He rubbed her back and did what Melissa had done to him when his mom had died. He rocked her. The movement was almost undetectable, but it was soothing. He's not sure how long they sat there, before her crying subsided. He thought she had fell asleep, until she sat up, wiping her face.

"Oh my gosh I am so sorry. I didn't mean to turn your shirt into a hanky."

He shook his head, waving her worries off. "No biggie. It'll wash out."

She got up, holding her hand out to him. "Let's get off the stairs. We have furniture for a reason."

He took her hand, and they walked to a swing at the end of the porch. They sat down, and instead of sitting on the opposite sides, she sat so they were touching, and leaned into him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and breathed in his scent. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, rubbing up and down her arm. He was totally just winging it, but if she didn't protest he would keep it up.

They sat silent for a while, before she spoke up.

"Derek was arrested, this morning. They found part of Laura on his property. Thought he had killed her, which is just crazy. Derek loved Laura."

He didn't know what to say. Obviously she hadn't been made privy to the fact that it was he and Scott that had got him arrested. "My dad said, that it looked like an animal had killed her."

"The only thing i can think of, as far as why Derek had buried her on his land, is that he just wanted to put her to rest. Another Hale dead, what a spectacle it would, hell will be."

She went quiet, and then he heard the sobs again. He didn't stop what he was doing, just kept rubbing her arm. At least she was getting it out, he hadn't liked the unemotional reaction that she had given when he first arrived.

"I can't remember the last time we actually talked. The last year it's just been postcards, from random locations. Never once mentioning that she was coming back. That part is going to drive me crazy."

"You can't do that. You can't fill your head with what ifs and whys? You are never going to get those answers. All you can do now, is remember her and man this sounds so cliche, but move on. Do you know if there is going to be a funeral?"

"Derek didn't want one. He just wanted to bury her with the rest of the family. My dad persuaded him to let us be there when he does it. We're going to do it in the morning."

"That's good. Putting her to rest will be good for all of you."

"Would it be weird, if I asked you to come with me," she asked, and instantly she regretted it. "It would, wouldn't it? Forget I said anything."

He laughed, "It wouldn't be weird. I'd be glad to be there for you, but I think this is something you need to do with your family and Derek. I can be there for you afterwards though."

"I'd like that," she said, snuggling deeper into his chest.

They sat on the swing, Stiles gently rocking them for close to an hour, neither one talking, just being.

When Hank opened the door, he saw Maxi on the swing, feet pulled up beside her. Her head was on Stiles chest, and she was wrapped around him. Both were asleep. He smiled, making his way over to them.

Maybe Stiles would make this loss a little bit easier on his little girl.

He gently shook Stiles, waking him up and placing his finger against his lips. He then pointed to Maxi, and Stiles shook his head.

"I'll carry her inside. Thanks for being there for her. I'm sure she really appreciated it. Did she tell you what's going on?"

"Yes sir. My dad had told me before she did though. I was worried about her, so I checked in."

"I'm glad you did. She's lucky to have you son," Hank said, leaning in to pick up his sleeping daughter. She stirred, opening her eyes.

"Daddy? What are you doing? Where's Stiles?"

"I'm right here. We fell asleep on the swing."

She smiled, "Thanks for coming over. It means a lot," she said as she fell asleep again.

Stiles smiled and stood up from the swing. "I should probably head home."

"You okay to drive son?"

"Oh yeah, i'll be fine. Tell her i'll get ahold of her tomorrow, please?"

"Sure thing. Drive safe."

Stiles watched as Hank walked into the house with Maxi in his arms and then made his way to the jeep. He drove home, relishing in the fact that when Maxi had needed someone she had turned to him.  
He swore right there, he would always be there for her, no matter what.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

The next morning, Maxi woke up with a pounding headache. She hated falling asleep crying. She crawled out of bed, grabbed some Tylenol and chased it with a large glass of water. She had a feeling she was going to need all the liquids she could get today. Once the meds were down, she brushed her teeth, and started a hot shower. Looking at the clock, she saw that they were set to meet Derek on the Hale property in roughly two hours. She could already hear water running in other parts of the house, so she figured everyone had the same idea as her. Once she got out of the shower, she put on her undergarments and wrapped up in her robe. She walked to her balcony doors, watching as the rain fell. How fitting. She stood, watching as it fell. It reminded her of her mothers funeral. It had been raining then too, but much harder. She then made her way to her closet, going to find a dress. She steered away from the one that still hung in the back of her closet, the one she had worn almost a year ago. She grabbed a simple fit and flare knit dress, paired it with a pair of black tights, and figured since they would be in the woods while it was raining, pulled on a pair of flat, calf high black boots. She then returned to the bathroom, weaving her hair up into a bun with a braid wrapped around it. She straightened her bangs, then sat down on the toilet. She saw no point in doing her makeup, it would just be ruined quickly. She had no idea what to expect today. All she knew was that they were meeting Derek at his family cemetery, a short distance from the burned down Hale house. She stood up, going to her closet. She grabbed a baby blue pea coat, a pair of black gloves, and her umbrella. She then grabbed her purse and her phone, throwing it into her bag without checking it.

When she got downstairs and walked into the kitchen, she found Gabi and her dad. Gabi was in a pair of black leggings and a long black tunic. Hank was in a pair of black slacks and a black button up. He hadn't bothered with a tie.

"Hungry sweetheart?"

She shook her head no, pouring herself a cup of coffee. She then took a seat beside Gabi, taking hold of her hand that was resting on the counter. She felt Gabi squeeze back, but neither said a word. Gabi had been young when the Hales were still around. She was kind of surprised her dad was having her go to this. Almost as if she had read her mind, Gabi spoke up.

"I asked to come. I wanted to be there for you three, you especially. I know how much Laura meant to you growing up, even after she left."

Maxi shook her head, afraid if she spoke she would start to cry again. Renny joined them shortly after, denying breakfast as well. The four sat, three drinking coffee, one drinking milk, waiting for it to be time to leave. No words were spoke, it was completely silent. She was sure that the rest were thinking of the last time the four of them had sat here, in all black. She knew she was.

Hank stood up, pouring his cup into the sink. "Let's head out guys."

The drive was quick, and it didn't feel like it had been six years since they had made it. When they pulled up, they saw Derek's camaro, and the gates to the cemetery. They all opened their umbrellas and began their walk.

When they reached Derek, he was stood by the six foot deep hole in the ground, a very simple coffin placed beside him. She didn't know how he had got it on such short notice, and she had no intention of asking. When Derek saw them, he started to walk towards them. Hank reached him first, pulling him in for a hug. They said somethings to each other, before Hank stepped away and made his way towards the plot. Renny spoke next, Gabi following their dad. When it was just Maxi and Derek, he hugged her. As soon as his arms were around her, the tears started to flow. He held her as she cried, soothingly rubbing her back.

"I'm so sorry Derek. I'm so sorry you lost her too."

She could feel him shake his head, but he didn't stop his motions or let her go.

"I'm sorry you did too."

She tried to calm herself down, stepping away from Derek. She wiped her eyes, knowing she must look a mess, even without makeup running down her face. She took his arm and they made their way over to the plot to join the rest of the group.

"Who dug the hole," Renny asked.

"I did."

"Derek," my dad said, "You should have let us help."

"I wanted to do this on my own. She was all I had left. I wanted to be the one that put her in the ground."

Hank nodded his head, trying to understand the kid. "You still have Peter," he said.

Derek looked at him, "If you believe that, you haven't been to see him recently. He's gone. There's nothing left of the old Peter there."

Maxi could hear the bitterness in his tone. She stepped closer, taking his hand. She gave it a small squeeze but didn't divert her gaze from the coffin.

"Would anyone like to say anything? Maxi, Renny," Hank asked.

Renny shook his head, not having anything he would like to share. He was still in shock.

Maxi cleared her throat, squeezing Derek's hand tighter. "Laura was the big sister I never got. No matter what she was doing growing up, she always made time for me. She never made me feel like I was a bother, she never told me I was annoying like other people. She always made me feel accepted and loved. I could go to her for anything. I used to look forward to getting older and having boy trouble, cause I was so excited to be able to talk to her about it. I never got the chance though. When we did get to talk after she left, I didn't want to waste our time on trivial things like boys. I just wanted to know what she was doing, when she was coming back. She never gave me an answer. She would always change the subject, ask me some silly question to distract me. I think I let her do it, cause I didn't want to hear the words never come out of her mouth," and before she could say anything more, she started to cry again. Derek wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her to him. She returned the gesture, around his waist. "Laura, you always were my sister and you always will be. I love you."

Derek, Renny, and Hank moved to lower the casket into the ground. After about twenty minutes, they were done. Maxi made her way to the mound of dirt, grabbing a small handful.

As she poured the dirt into the hole she said, "Goodbye Laura. I hope you found peace."

While the guys used shovels and filled the hole, Gabi and Maxi walked around the cemetery. Maxi stopped at Ben, Talia, and Cora, Gabi stopping beside her.

"Do you think Derek will get Laura a headstone?"

Maxi looked at her, "If he doesn't, we will. She'll have one, no matter what."

"What do you think it should say?"

"Something simple, like Laura. She didn't like flashy things. Beloved daughter and sister sounds perfect for her. She wouldn't have wanted anything else."

Gabi shook her head, looking back to the guys. They were nearly done. "We should head to the car."

Maxi didn't say anything. She rubbed her hand across the top of Ben's headstone, then followed her sister. She would have to make sure she talked to Derek about that headstone.

When they returned home, everyone immediately went and changed. Maxi changed into sweats and a hoodie, grabbed her phone out of her purse, and then crawled back into bed. She saw that she had a couple of missed calls and text. She deleted all the text, then checked her missed calls. Two from Stiles and one from Danny. She would call Danny back later, she felt she needed to call Stiles.

She pressed send, then placed the phone to her ear. It had only rang once when he picked up.

"Maxi! Hi, how are you doing?"

She laughed quietly, "Hi Stiles. I'm doing ok. Just got home."

"From the funeral? How was it?"

"Simple, just like Laura would have liked it. It was just the four of us and Derek."

"Sounds nice, considering the circumstances."

"You're right, it was. I just feel so bad for Derek, he's so alone. I just don't know how to help him."

"It's like my dad told me last night, all you can do is be there for them. If they want the help, they'll ask for it."

"You obviously don't know me. It's very hard for me to just sit back and not do something."

"I can imagine. Derek doesn't seem like the kind of guy that wants help though."

"You're right, he's not."

"Like I said."

"I know. I just need to let him do his own thing. If he wants to talk or needs help, he'll come to us."

"That's the way to look at it."

She smiled, glad that she had called him. "Thanks for last night by the way. It meant a lot to me that you came over like that. I didn't even think about the curfew, I hope you didn't get in trouble."

"My dad and I had already talked about it. He assumed I was going to leave anyway, so he wasn't too upset when I told him this morning."

"Good, i'd hate to be the cause of a problem with you two."

"No problems here," he said, "So, what are you going to do with the rest of the day?"

"I'm laying in bed at the moment. No real desire to crawl out of it. My homework is all done, so probably just lay here and watch Netflix or even nap. You?"

He swallowed deeply at the thought of her laying in bed, and tried to push that to the back of his mind. He was then struck with the image of her in her pajamas that night after the party. He took a deep breath, thinking of Coach. That seemed to help. "No plans here. Maybe see if Scott wants to hang out but I do have some homework to do first."

"You should definitely get that done first," she said, yawning.

He heard her yawn, "Why don't you take that nap? You can call me later if you want too."

"That sounds like a really good idea. If I don't get ahold of you later, i'll see you in the morning ok?'

"Sounds like a plan. Sleep tight!"

"Night Stiles."

"Night Maxi."

She hung up her phone, set it on the bedside table, and within minutes, she was out.

I don't know about you, but that was an emotional chapter.  
Re-reading it and I started to cry!  
I hope you guys enjoyed it.  
Let me know, things to add, things to change. Going to fast, going to slow?

Thanks to BrittWitt16, poorxbrokexcollegexkid & emele807 for your reviews. They mean the world to me.

The amount of reviews dropped this last chapter, so if you didn't like something let me know!

Can't fix it if I don't know.

Thanks for reading, enjoy!


	7. 50th Review One-Shot

**Flashback Fall of 2000**

**Gabi - 1**

**Maxi - 5**

**Cora - 6 **

**Renny - 7**

**Derek - 11**

**Laura - 15**

As soon as the SUV came to a stop, 5-year-old Maxi unbuckled and jumped out.

"Papa Ben. Papa Ben," she yelled, running towards the large man chopping wood.

He quickly set the ax down, moving towards her. He picked her up, swinging her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck squeezing tight.

"Papa Ben, I've missed you so! Why has it been so long?"

Ben Hale laughed, smiling down at the little girl. "Hasn't your dad been busy? If he's busy, than I'm busy. But don't for a second think that means I don't miss you."

He placed her back on the ground, taking her hand and leading her towards the large house.

"Papa Ben, where's Uncle Peter?"

"I don't know sweetheart. Why don't you go inside and look for him?"

She shook her head, taking off towards the house. When she entered the house, she immediately went to the kitchen. In there she found her mom and 1-year-old Gabi, along with mama Thalia , 15-year-old Laura, and 6-year-old Cora. She quickly said hi to Thalia and Cora and gave Laura a hug.

"Have you seen uncle Peter!"

Laura and Thalia looked at each other, smiling, before Laura answered.

"I think I saw him out back, or was it the living room?"

"Is he hiding from me?"

"Why would Peter hide from his favorite little girl," Thalia asked.

"He is, he is hiding. Are we playing hide and seek and no one told me?"

When she didn't get an answer, she ran out of the kitchen, to the living room. There, she found 7 yr old Renny and 12-year-old Derek.

Maxi took a seat beside Derek, smiling up at him.

"D have you seen Uncle Peter?"

He looked away from his game to Maxi, rolling his eyes.

"No Maxine, I haven't seen him. Maybe he's outside," he said, un-pausing his game. She pouted, looking at her brother. He just shrugged, not wanting to look uncool in front of Derek and help her.

"Will you help me look for him? Please D?"

"I'm playing a video game. Can't you find him on your own?"

"I don't like going out back by myself, you know that."

"Well than he knows that too. Maybe he's out front."

"We came in the front and I didn't see him."

She sat there, staring at Derek until he put his controller down. "Fine, let's go check the basement. Maybe he's in his study."

She jumped up, clapping and taking Derek's hand. Renny quickly grabbed the game controller, un-pausing the game and playing.

"Don't kill me Ren or I'll swirly you."

Renny swallowed, than shook his head. "OK D, promise."

Derek and Maxi walked out of the room, making their way downstairs.

"If I help you find him, will you let me go back to my game?"

She shook her head, always a bit more shy around Derek. He was just so cute.

They made their way down the stairs, Maxi walking close to Derek, a little afraid of the dark basement. When they reached the bottom, Derek walked to the other side of the room. As Maxi went to take the last step, she tripped, landing on her knee on the hard ground.

"Owie!"

"Maxine? Are you ok," Derek asked rushing back over to her.

She started to softly cry, "I fell on my knee. I think I have a owie, but I can't see."

Derek helped her up, sitting her down on the bottom step. "Peter, are you down here? Max is looking for you. She hurt her knee." When no one answered, Derek picked her up, carrying her up the stairs. He took her to the bathroom, sitting her down on the seat. "I'm going to go get my mom. I'll be right back."

While Derek was gone, Maxi stared at her knee. It was bleeding, and it was really gross. She was still crying, but just a bit. She heard the door open, and instead of Thalia walking in, Laura did.

"Hey ladybug, did you hurt yourself?"

She shook her head, showing her knee. "I fell off the bottom basement step looking for Uncle Peter with D. It's really dark down there."

"Yeah, it sure is. Let's get you cleaned up, okay?"

Maxi shook her head, watching as Laura opened the cabinet under the sink and pulled out a small box. She laid the box on the counter and opened it. She pulled out some brown bottle, cotton balls, neosporin, and the band-aids. She smiled, seeing that the Band-Aid was Barbie. Cora had picked them out. She watched as Laura put the liquid on the cotton balls, than brought it closer to her knee.

"Is this going to hurt?"

"It will for a moment, but I'll blow the pain away, okay?"

Maxi shook her head, and watched as she pressed it to her knee. She squealed, pain shooting down her knee. "Laura, it hurts. Blow it away, blow it away!"

Laura pulled the cotton away from her knee, gently blowing on the wound. After a couple of blows, the pain went away. "I'm going to press this on their one more time, to make sure it's all clean, okay?"

Maxi shook her head, gripping onto Laura's available hand. It didn't hurt as bad this time, but she didn't let go of her. Once it was cleaned, she put neosporin on it, and then put the band-aids on it.

"All better?"

She smiled up at Laura, giving her a hug. "Thank you."

Laura hugged her back, "Of course ladybug. Let's go find your mom."

Laura and her walked into the kitchen, where the moms were seated at the table while Thalia fed Gabi some baby food. Maxi ran to her mom, crawling up into her lap.

"Mommy, I got a owie. Will you kiss it better?"

Denise saw the band-aids on her daughters knee,"What happened?"

"D took me into the basement to find Uncle Peter. It was dark, and I fell off the steps."

Denise leaned down, placing a kiss on her knee. "All better."

Laura was getting things out of the cabinets, "Hey Bug, before dinner would you like to make cookies with Cora and I?"

Maxi gasped, "Yes please," she said, jumping off her moms lap and doing a little dance.

Thalia laughed, "Did you ever find Peter, Maxine?"

She turned to her, her smile falling off her face. "No. I've looked everywhere but the backyard," she said, sitting back down.

"Well, I'm pretty sure I saw him out there, going for walk. Are you going to go look for him?"

Maxi bit her lip, not really wanting to go out there, but she really wanted to find him. She made up her mind, "Yes, I'm going to find him," and then got up, and made her way out to the backyard.

"Uncle Peter! Uncle Peter! Where are you?" She continued walking, without going further into the trees. The trees scared her. "Uncle Peter! It's not fun, I don't want to play anymore. Can you come out please?"

When she didn't get an answer, she stomped her foot and crossed her arms. "I'm not moving another step until you come out!"

She stood there for a few moments then suddenly she was being swung up onto her Uncles shoulders. She squealed, grabbing onto his hands to steady herself.

"Uncle Peter! Where have you been? I've yelled and yelled. I even went to the basement, and got hurt. See my ouchie?"

"Well , I'm very sorry you got hurt Misfit," he said, placing a kiss on her knee. "Were you looking long?"

"Since we got here. I tried to go into the woods, but then I got scared. I don't want to go into the woods. My teacher told me that the Big Bad Wolf lives out there."

Her Uncle laughed, walking deeper into the woods. "The Big Bad Wolf huh? What do you think he does out here?"

"He eats little girls Uncle Peter! He's big and scary, and mean! Why are you going out there?"

"Why wouldn't I? I want to see this Big Bad Wolf?"

"But Uncle Peter, I'm a little girl! What if it eats me?"

"Misfit, would I ever let a wolf eat you?"

She shook her head, quietly replying, "No. You will always protect me. That's your job as god father."

"That's right. Now, do you want to continue to look? You can tell me about your day while we hunt the wolf."

"Ok," she said, as they continued walking around the woods. "I had school today, and my teacher, Mrs. S, she taught us all about the letter J. It's for jump, did you know that?"

Peter laughed, "Yes, I actually did. Do you know what else J is for?"

She stuck her tongue out, trying to think of another word they had talked about. "Jackson. The teacher told us that Jackson's name started with a J. Right?"

"That is right, yes. J is also for juice, jungle, and jello."

"Jello! I love jello. The green kind is my favorite. What's your favorite?"

"I'm partial to the orange kind. What else happened at school?"

"Stiles gave me his cookie at snack time, after Jackson broke mine. He said I shouldn't have to eat a broken cookie. His Daddy is a cop! His name makes me giggle. Stil-enk-sky?" She laughed.

"Stilinski, sweetie. And yes, his daddy is a cop. Do you know who his Mommy is?"

"Yes! She's our teacher! She's such a nice lady. I wish my mom was my teacher. He's so lucky!"

Peter laughed, starting to make his way back towards the house. "Looks like the Big Bad Wolf isn't here. Maybe we can get it next time."

"Maybe. If anyone can catch him, it's you Uncle Peter."

As they reached the house, he picked Maxi up over his head, carrying her into the house. "Pretty soon you're going to be too big to carry."

She hugged his neck, "I hope not. That would make me sad. I'm going to stop growing, now."

They walked into the house, going to the living room. He sat her down on the couch beside her brother. "I'm going to go get cleaned up for dinner. Stay here okay?"

She shook her head, watching the video game on the TV. "Yes Uncle Peter."

Peter left the room, and Cora entered.

"Max! Where were you? I was waiting for you in my room. Come on!"

Before Maxi could say anything, Cora grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room. They ran up the stairs, hand in hand, slamming Cora's door behind them.

The girls sat on the floor, playing with Cora's Barbie's, waiting for dinner to be ready. They dressed the Barbie's up in the fanciest clothes, making them dance with Ken and chatter together in a group.

"Are you going to get D tonight?"

"I have a idea." The girls laughed, always enjoying when Cora teased her brother.

After about twenty minutes, Laura walked into the bedroom. "You guys ready to make cookies?"

"Yes," they both shouted, jumping up quickly.

"Ok, clean up the Barbie's, then wash your hands. I'll meet you in the kitchen."

They went in the bathroom, both using the stool left in there for them. Cora turned the water on and both girls placed their hands underneath. They squeezed too much soap into their hands, and started to make bubbles with it. They giggled, then Maxi accidentally squirted water into Cora's face. Cora gasped, then quickly splashed water at Maxi. This then turned into a water fight, until Laura caught them and told them to clean up the mess and finish washing their hands.

The three made their way into the kitchen, and Laura grabbed aprons off the wall for both girls. She managed to make them fit the girls, though they reached the ground on both. The girls laughed, dancing around in the aprons.

"Ok, Cora, I need you to get the milk and butter out of the fridge. Maxi, come over here and help me start measuring out the dry stuff."

Both girl did as they were told. Maxi helped measure sugar, then started measuring the flour. As she was scooping the second cup out, she sneezed, causing flour to fly everywhere. All three of the girls paused, before they started laughing. Their faces were all white, but none of them cared. They were laughing so hard, that Uncle Peter walked into the room, to see what all the commotion is about.

"What is going on in here?" When he saw the flour all over and the white faces, he paused for a moment before he started to laugh. He quickly walked back out of the room, coming back in with a camera and taking a couple of pictures.

"Uncle Peter, were a mess," Laura said, walking over to the sink.

"Exactly why I needed pictures. Blackmail someday."

Laura wet a dishcloth, cleaning the two girls up, then herself, then the counter. Once she was done cleaning up, they continued with making the cookies. Just a simple sugar cookie recipe, but it was very fun to Maxi.

"Can we do this again?"

"Well, I think we should finish this batch first but of course we can make cookies again. We can even do different kinds next time. What's your favorite cookie?"

"Chocolate Chip," Cora and Maxi yelled at the same time. Laura laughed.

"Ok, next week, we'll make chocolate chip cookies. Maybe you can take them to school with you Maxi, how's that sound?"

The girls joined hands, doing a little jumping spin in celebration. "Everyone will be so happy if I bring chocolate chip cookies to school!"

"Chocolate chip is Mrs. S's favorite kind of cookie. She told us when we were talking about our favorite things."

They finished making the batter, then started scooping them onto the tray. Once the tray was full and the batter was gone, they put them in the oven.

"Now, we play the waiting game. What should we do while wait?"

Cora jumped up, hand in the air, "Laura, can you paint our nails?"

Maxi spun around, looking at Laura, "Yeah, can you paint mine a really bright yellow? When I wore my yellow dress yesterday, Stiles said it was pretty, like the sun."

Cora stuck her tongue out, making a gross face. "Boys are so yucky! They stink and they are always dirty. Last week, one of them was eating the paste at art center. So gross."

Laura laughed at the girls, they were so different, but that never stopped them from being friends. "Ok, let's go pick out nail colors, then we'll come back here and check the cookies. Cora I'll do yours first,"

The three made their way up to Laura's room, Maxi quickly grabbing the box of nail polishes. She found the yellow that she wanted, "Got it! It's going to be so pretty."

Cora looked through the box, finally finding a dark green that she liked. "This one."

Laura took the two bottles, then they returned to the kitchen. She checked the cookies, then sat down beside the girls. She painted Cora's fingers first, checked the cookies again, then painted Maxi's. When she was all done, the cookies were done as well. She left the girls sitting at the table, hands flat on the table, with instructions not to move them and promises of cookies when she returned.

She pulled the cookies out, removing them from the sheet and onto a cooling rack. She put two on a napkin, poured 2 small glasses of milk, and returned to the table. She checked their nails, found them dry, then gave them their cookies. "Don't tell the adults."

'Don't tell the adults what," Hank asked as he walked in the room. Maxi, thinking she would get in trouble for eating a cookie before dinner, quickly shoved the cookie in her mouth.

"Nothing daddy," she said around the cookie in her mouth, crumbs flying everywhere.

Hank laughed, grabbing a napkin. He cleaned up the table, then wiped his daughters mouth.

"Did you make cookies with Laura baby?"

"Yes Daddy."

"Did Laura give you one of those cookies?"

She looked down at her little hands resting in her lap, "Maybe?"

"Was it good?"

"I think so. I ate it so fast, I'm not sure if I really tasted it." Hank walked over to the cooling cookies, grabbing one. He broke it in half, giving half to Cora, and the other half to Maxi.

"Eat it a little slower this time, and tell me what you think."

She ate the cookie, taking small bites, but still finishing quickly. "Well?"

"It's so yummy Daddy! We should never buy cookies again. Making them is better!"

"That's what I think too. Maybe Laura and you can continue making cookies together, and trying new recipes each time."

Maxi turned to Laura, "Can we do that?"

"Of course we can! As long as your dad keeps showing me new recipes for dinner, I'll show you new recipes for dessert."

Laura and Hank shared a smile, both sharing a love for cooking. "Speaking of dinner, I think it's time to get cleaned up to eat."

The girls quickly ran to the bathroom, this time just washing up and not causing a mess.

Once that was done, they went to the dining room. Every one took their seats, Papa Ben saying grace. The food was passed around and plates were made for the little ones.

"Derek, do you need salt," Cora asked.

"Please?"

She grabbed the salt, slowly handing it to her brother. Maxi watched, as Derek tipped the salt to shake it onto his food, and the lid fell off. Soon Derek's plate was covered in salt.

Maxi and Cora started laughing.

"You little brats. This is still not funny!"

"You fall for it every time," Cora said, laughing loudly.

Derek grumbled, getting up to take his plate to the kitchen.

Papa Ben was laughing, but Mama Thalia was giving Cora a stern look.

"Cora, sweetie, you have to quit picking on him. You are going to make him angry one of these days and he's going to retaliate."

As she finished her sentence, Derek walked back in. "Next time, I'm going to start shaving your Barbie's heads.

Cora gasped, then started crying.

"Derek. Was that necessary," Thalia asked as Cora came over to her.

"Just letting her know. Her actions have consequences."

The rest of dinner was calm, the adults talking among each other, while the kids played with their food.

When dinner was over, Derek and Laura started clearing the table, while the rest went into the living room.

"Dad, can you read more of the Harry Potter book to us? Maxi and I want to know what happens with the Dragons!"

Ben grabbed the book, and took a seat in the middle of the couch. The girls climbed up on his left side, holding hands and waiting for him to start.

Once everyone was in the living room, Ben started to read. The girls were intrigued for the first 20 minutes or so, then they started to get tired. Cora quietly made her way to her moms lap first, quickly falling asleep. About 10 minutes later, Maxi climbed off the couch and walked over to Peter, climbing into his lap. She laid her head on his chest, falling asleep to the sound of his beating heart as he stroked her hair.

When Ben realized the girls were asleep, he shut the book, putting it back in its place on the end table. "That was faster than I thought it would be."

Everyone laughed, looking at the girls.

"Renny, are you ready to head home?"

Renny shook his head, going to put his shoes back on. Hank made to grab Maxi, but was stopped by Peters voice. "You can always just leave her here. I'll put her in bed with Cora. I'm sure they wouldn't be sad to wake up together."

Thalia stood up, Cora in her arms. "She can borrow some of Cora's clothes."

"And I can take them both to school in the morning," Laura offered.

Hank and Denise shared a look, then shook their heads. "Okay, sounds good. I'm sure you're right, neither one will be upset to wake up to the other."

Thalia and Peter, each carrying a child, made their way upstairs. Both girls having been dressed in leggings and a long shirt were placed in bed together, sleeping the night away.

Xxxxx****xxxx****xxxxX

The next morning, when Maxi woke up to her friends face, she started smiling. She shook Cora, waking her up. "Cora, we had a sleepover and we didn't even know it!" Cora groaned, rolling back over.  
Maxi, ready to be up, climbed out of bed and made her way into the hallway. It was still early, as the sun wasn't completely up. She checked the kitchen, and finding no one there, she made her way to Peters room.

She knocked lightly on his door, hearing a soft "Come In." She opened the door, finding him laying in bed.

"Morning Misfit. Did you sleep okay?"

She climbed onto the bed, giving Peter a hug. "Yes! I woke up with Cora. How could it have been a bad sleep?"

Peter laughed, placing a kiss on top of her head. "Are you hungry?"

She shook her head, "Yes. My tummy was talking to me, that's what woke me up."

Peter got out of bed, pulling his robe on. "Well, what sounds good? I can make you some frozen waffles or a bowl of cereal."

"Cereal! With marshmallows, please?"

Peter and Maxi made their way into the kitchen, her taking a seat at the bar and him pulling out two big bowls. "Lucky Charms okay?"

"My favorite!"

He fixed the two bowls, then took the seat beside her. They ate in silence, until Maxi started pointing out the shapes and colors of her marshmallows. They were just finishing up breakfast, when Laura and Ben entered the room.

"Good morning ladybug," Laura said, giving the little girl a hug. "Where's Cora?"

"She didn't want to get up with me, so I found Uncle Peter instead."

"Good choice. She's grumpy in the mornings," Ben said, pouring some coffee.

"Let me eat, and then we'll find you some clothes okay?"

"Okay Laura."

The four sat, soon joined by a dressed Cora and Thalia.

"Where's D?"

"He's always the last one up. He'll be ready to go right before it's time to leave.," Laura replied.

Laura finished eating, then took Maxi upstairs to get dressed. She put her in a pair of jeans and a dark blue sweater. "That will look really pretty with your yellow nails."

"Thank you for painting them. Do you think boys are yucky Laura?"

Laura smiled, "I do not think boys are yucky. Well, not all of them at least. Some can be. We'll talk about that when you get older though. Why do you ask? Do you think boys are yucky?"

"Some of them are. Like there's some that spit, or are mean to us girls. But some are nice. Like Isaac or Scott. They're both nice."

"Um-hm, what about this Stiles boy?"

"Oh, Stiles is the nicest boy! He always makes sure that I get to sit on the pink chair in circle, and he's the only one that remembers that I like white milk more than chocolate milk at snack time."

Laura smiled, someone had her first crush. "Well, I am sure he will love your yellow nails."

Maxi looked at her fingers, smiling. "You think so?"

"I know so. Let's go fix your hair."

Laura put her hair in braided pigtails, typing them with little white bows on the end. By the time they were finished, Derek was downstairs, waiting to leave. The four of them loaded into Laura's car, waving goodbye to the three adults.

Laura dropped Derek off at the Junior High, Cora off at the first grade entrance, then stopped at the kindergarten entrance. "Do I need to walk you in?"

Before she could finish her sentence, Maxi was un-buckling and jumping out. "No thank you, I'm a big girl."

Laura smiled, "Yes, you are. Your mom or dad will be here after school, like usual. Have a good day."

"Bye Laura, love you!"

"Love you to Ladybug."

With that, Maxi shut her door, and made for the entrance. About halfway there, a vehicle pulled up and Cassidy Miles and Scott McCall got out. "Max, wait up!"

Maxi stopped, waiting for Cassidy. "Hi," she said, giving Cassidy a hug.

They joined hands, then made their way inside. Once they entered the room, Cassidy and Maxi took their seats while Scott went and joined the boys. They were soon joined by Lydia and Erica. They sat, waiting for the teacher to start class.  
The last people to enter the room were Mrs. S. and Stiles. She directed the kids to their tables, and started class.

After numbers practice, was center time. Maxi was told to go to the green center, which was shape practice. She got partnered with Isaac, a quiet but funny boy. After everyone had done two centers, it was time for recess. The kids got their jackets and lined up. Maxi stood with her hall buddy, Danny, and bounced on her heels. Finally, everyone was lined up and they were able to go outside.

The kids took off running, each having a specific destination in mind. Several went to the swings, the slide, or the merry-go-round. Maxi made the bag of recess toys, getting out the soccer ball. She started to walk off but was quickly stopped by Matt.

"Give that to us. The boys want to play with it."

"We can all play with it."

"No, girls don't play soccer," Jackson said.

"Says who?"

Jackson looked at the boys with him, "We do."

"Come on Jackson, just let her play," Scott said.

"No, I don't want to play with a girl baby."

"I'm not a baby. I can play soccer and baseball and basketball just as good as you can!"

Matt walked up to her, grabbing the ball. As he pulled it out of her arms, it jerked her forward and she fell to the ground, hitting her hurt knee.

"Ow! Be nice Matt."

Matt just laughed, walking off with the boys following him. She sat down, pulling her pant leg up. Her knee was bleeding again, the band-aids were turning red. She started to cry softly.

"Are you okay Max?" She looked up, seeing Stiles, Scott, and Cassidy standing in front of her.

"Why aren't you off playing with the other boys?"

"We weren't playing with the boys. We were playing house under the jungle gym."

She looked at Scott and Stiles. "Really? But you're boys."

"She makes us," Stiles said, holding his hand out to her. "Lets go show the teacher."

Maxi and Stiles walked to Mrs. S, holding hands the whole way.

"Mrs. S, I hurt my knee."

She leaned down, seeing the little girls knee bleeding. "Did you hurt it at home?"

"I hurt it at my friend's house last night. But I just fell down again."

"Okay, let's go get you cleaned up, shall we?"

Maxi and Mrs. S. made their way inside, taking care of her knee. When that was done, they went back out, Maxi going to the swings with Isaac. They took turns pushing each other, before that got boring.

"Do you want to go play house under the play ground with Cassidy, Scott, and Stiles? It could be fun."

Isaac just shook his head, following Maxi over. "Can we play with you guys?"

Scott was on the ground, obviously acting like a dog. "Of course," Cassidy said, taking charge.

"Isaac, you and I can be the Mommy and Daddy, cause you're the biggest. Stiles and Maxi, you can be the kids, and Scott, you stay the dog."

Cassidy grabbed Isaac's hand, pulling him over towards her. For the rest of recess, the 5 of them played house. After a short while, Lydia made her way over, grabbing Maxi and pulling her over to play on the monkey bars.

Once recess was over, the kids all made their way inside, taking their seats again. After two more lessons, it was snack time. Jackson and Stiles were todays helpers, so they started handing out vanilla wafers and milk. Jackson was doing milk and gave Maxi a chocolate milk. She pouted a bit, but didn't say anything. When she got her wafers, the chocolate milk was taken off her table and a white milk was put in its place.

"There you go, white milk."

She smiled up at Stiles, taking her wafers from him. "Thank you."

When he handed her the wafers, he saw her nails. "Yellow! I love that color. It's so bright."

Maxi smiled at him, even bigger then before. "I like it too. It's like the sun." They smiled at each other, before he moved onto the next one.

After snack time, there wasn't much time left in the day. They sat in circle, Maxi getting the pink chair with Lydia beside her. They sat and listened as Mrs. S. started reading "Give a Mouse a Cookie."

Suddenly, Maxi raised her hand.

"Yes Maxi?"

"Would it be ok, if sometime I brought chocolate chip cookies to school for the class?"

"That would be very nice of you, yes of course."

"Thank you. I made sugar cookies yesterday, and I remembered that you said chocolate chip was your favorite."

"It is. I love chocolate." The teacher then continued reading, leading up to the end of the day.

When class was over, the kids all made their way outside to their waiting parents. Lydia, Jackson, and Danny went home with Jackson's Nanny. Scott and Cassidy were picked up by Scott's Mom. Erica, Isaac, and Matt took the bus. Maxi stood there, looking for her mom. Finally, she saw her walking up towards the school.

Maxi ran to meet her, excited to tell her about her day.

"Did you have a good day sweetie," Denise asked as she buckled Maxi into her seat.

"I had a great day Mommy," then spent the entire ride home telling her about her day.

**This is a special One-Shot for Anchor's 50th review, requested by MissECharlotte  
Included a special shout out to her character, Cassidy Miles and her story Whatever It Takes**

**I hope you all enjoyed it, as it was kind of thrown together.  
The Hale Family feels are strong in this, right?**

**Thanks for all the reviews on chapter _6, _it meant a lot to me. **

**I do have one request.  
To the anons that come on and leave reviews, criticizing things, please get off anon.  
How am I supposed to message you back and find out what is wrong, if you won't let me?  
I do appreciate the critiques, they help make the story better. But if I'm not finding the issue  
during my read through, and I can't ask you about it, it will never get fixed.**


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